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UCSB    LIBRARY 


LIBRARY 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

SANTA  BARBARA 


PRESENTED  BY 
ERIC   SCHMIDT 


'^yyTiJU  "' 


jBRITISH   PAINTERS 


WITH    EIGHTY   EXAMPLES    OF    THEIR     WORK 
ENGRAVED    ON   WOOD 


NEW  YORK 

D.     APPLETON     AND      COMPANY 

I,  3,  &  5,  BOND    STREET 

1881 


LONDON 

PRINTED  BY   VIRTUE   AND  CO.,   LIMITED 

CITY    ROAD 


PAINTERS    AND    ENGRAVINGS. 

CHAPTER   I. 

ARTISTS  BORN  IN  THE  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY. 

PAGE 

^     y.  M.   IV.  TURNER,  R.A 4 

The  Guard  ship  at  the  Nore. 
Venice  :  The  Grand  Canal. 

JOHN  CONSTABLE,  R.A 7 

The  Lock. 

The  Corn-field. 

SIR  AUGUSTUS  WALL  CALLCOTT,  R.A 9 

Rotterdam. 

Raffaelle  and  the  Fornarina. 

^      SIR  DAVID  WILKIE,  R.A 12 

The  Rent  Day. 

The  Maid  of  Saragossa. 

v)     BENJAMIN  ROBERT  HAYDON. 17 

Raising  of  Lazarus. 
QuiNTUs  Curtius. 

4     WILLIAM  MULREADY,  RA 21 

Lending  a  Bite. 

Choosing  the  Wedding  Gown. 

v\  WILLIAM  ETTY,  R.A 25 

Cupid  in  a  Shell. 

The  Combat  :  Woman  pleading  for  the  Vanquished. 

DA  VID  COX. 30 

Meadows  on  the  River  Lugg,  Herefordshire. 
Deer  Stalking,  Bolton  Park. 

"^SIR  CHARLES  LOCK  EASTLAKE,  K.B.,  P.R.A 34 

The  Brigand's  Wife. 
Greek  Fugitives. 


iv  PAINTERS    AND     ENGRAVINGS. 

PAGE 

DA  VID  ROBERTS,  R.A 38 

Portico  of  the  Temple,  Edfou,  Upper  Egypt. 
Church  of  St.  Gomer,  Brussels. 

CLARKSON  STANFIELD,  R.A 43 

Terminati  Marina  di  Citara. 
Tilbury  Fort— Wind  against  Tide. 


CHAPTER   II. 

ARTISTS  BORN  1800— 1820. 

FRANK  STONE,  A.R.A 48 

Bassanio  receiving  the  Letter  concerning  Antonio. 
Mated. 

THOMAS  WEBSTER,  R.A 51 

The  Dirty  Boy. 
Il  Penseroso. 

A  SIR  E.  LANDSEER,  R.A 55 

The  Alarm. 

The  Angler's  Guard. 

FREDERICK  TAYLER ■        •         •        •       59 

A  Highland  Gillie. 

A  Fete  Champetre  of  the  Time  of  Charles  II. 

WILLIAM  DYCE,  R.A 62 

King  Joash  shooting  the  "Arrow  of  Deliverance." 
Jacob  and  Rachel. 

CHARLES  WEST  COPE,  R.A 67 

"Baby's  Turn!" 

The  Life's  Story — Othello. 

THOMAS  CRESWICK,  R.A •        •        .71 

The  Entrance  to  the  Cover. 
The  Pleasant  Way  Home. 

RICHARD  ANSDELL,  R.A 75 

IsLA  Mayor— Banks  of  the  Guadalquivir. 
The  Spanish  Floaver-seller. 


PAINTERS    AND     ENGRAVINGS.  v 


rAOB 


THOMAS  JONES  BARKER 79 

The  Return  through  the  Valley  of  Death. 
A  Sister  of  IMercy. 

JOHN  CALLCOTT  HORSLEY,  R.A 83 

Henry  V.  when  Prince  of  Wales. 
Scene  from  "  Don  Quixote." 

SIR  JOHN  GILBERT,  R.A 87 

Sancho  Panza. 

A  Troop  of  Dragoons  in  a  Storm. 

WILLIAM  CHARLES  THOMAS  DOBSON,  R.A 91 

The  Child  Jesus  going  down  with  his  Parents  to  Nazareth. 
The  Charity  of  Dorcas. 

WILLIAM  POWELL  FRITH,  R.A 95 

Scene  from  the  "Bourgeois  Gentilhomme." 
Sancho  and  Don  Quixote. 

JAMES  CLARKE  HOOK,  R.A 99 

Market  Morning. 

Time  of  the  Persecution  of  the  Reformers  in  Paris. 

EDMUND  GILL 103 

On  the  River  Lledr,  North  Wales. 
Storm  and  Shipwreck. 

F.  R.  PICKERSGILL,  R.A ,07 

The  Death  of  Foscari. 
The  Burial  of  Harold. 


CHAPTER   III. 

ARTISTS  BORN  AFTER  1820. 

THOMAS  FAED,  R.A 112 

The  Visit  to  the  Village  School. 
Hide  and  Seek. 

FORD  MADOX  BROWN 116 

Haidee  and  Don  Juan. 
Christ  washing  Peter's  Feet. 


vi  PAINTERS     AND     ENGRAVINGS. 


PAGE 


SIR  JOSEPH  NOEL  PATON,  R.S.A 120 

MoRTE  d' Arthur. 

"  I  WONDER  WHO   LIVED  IN   THERE  !  " 

RICHARD  BEAVIS. 123 

Bedaween  Caravan  on  the  Road  to  Mount  Sinai. 
Collecting  Wreck  on  the  French  Coast — Ambleteuse. 

HENRY  STACY  MARKS,  R.A 127 

The  Missal  Painter. 

The  Franciscan  Sculptor  and  his  Model. 

WILLIAM  FREDERICK  YEAMES,  R.A 131 

The  Meeting  ob'  Sir  Thomas  More  and  his  Daughter. 
Stepping-Stones. 

LAWRENCE  ALMA-TADEMA,  R.A i35 

Greek  Festive  Scene. 
The  Convalescent. 

GEORGE  HENRY  BOUGHTON,  A.R.A. 140 

The  Last  of  the  "  Mayflower." 
IcHABOD  Crane. 

PHILIP  RICHARD  MORRIS,  A.R.A i44 

Prison  Farf:. 

Cradled  in  his  Calling. 

EDWARD  y.  POYNTER,  R.A i47 

The  Catapult. 
The  Festival. 

BRITON  RIVIERE,  A.R.A 151 

Apollo. 
Charity. 

FREDERICK  WALKER,  A.R.A 155 

The  Fireside. 

The  Right  of  Way. 

FRANK  HOLE,  A.R.A 159 

Deserted. 

"  The  Lord  gave,  and  the  Lord  hath  taken  away  ; 
blessed  be  the  name  of  the  Lord." 


BRITISH    PAINTERS, 


CHAPTER   I. 

ARTISTS    BORN    IN    THE    EIGHTEENTH    CENTURY. 

"Great  Art,"  says  Mr.  Ruskin,  "is  the  expression,  by  an  Art  gift,  of  a 
pure  soul."  The  growth  of  Art  must  be  regarded  as  founded  upon  moral 
development,  and  it  is  national  morality,  considered  as  the  aggregate  of 
individual  morality,  which  must  indicate  for  us  the  future  of  human  efforts  to 
express  what  is  beautiful.  The  future  of  Art  is  a  question  of  the  most 
engrossing  interest,  whether  we  view  it  as  one  of  the  great  questions  of  life, 
or  look  upon  it  as  involving  so  much  that  is  culturing  ourselves  and  our 
families,  pushing  forward  the  education  of  the  world.  Within  the  last  few 
years  improved  processes  of  photography  and  immensely  increased  facilities 
for  the  production  of  prints  have  brought  a  knowledge  of  pictures  into  the 
humblest  homes.  That  portion  of  human  information  which  relates  to  works 
of  Art  is,  and  always  will  be,  most  popular  among  studies  ;  it  is  a  subject  on 
which  natural  taste  comes  largely  to  our  aid,  and  on  which  each  talker  or 
thinker  may  take  up  his  own  ground.  We  may  even  suggest  that  the  stock- 
in-trade  of  learning  required  is  out  of  all  proportion  small.  Thus  the  interest 
attaching  to  so  abstruse  a  subject  as  theology  is  very  great ;  but  there  we  are 
met  at  the  very  outset  by  the  need  for  a  great  power  of  accurate  reasoning, 
and  the  very  frontiers  are  guarded  by  the  hardest  of  Greek. 

Yet  speculations  on  the  future  of  Art  are  not  very  rife  in  the  present  day, 
and  for  this  reason  amongst  others — some  phenomenal  work  is  required  to 
set  people  thinking,  just  as  the  electric  light  and  other  recent  discoveries  in 
electricity  have  directed  almost  universal  attention  to  that  science.  If  we 
follow  Mr.  Ruskin  from  the  "Theseus"  of  the  Athenian  School,  the  most 
perfect  representation  of  the  form  of  the  human  figure,  to  the  most  perfect 
expression  of  human  emotion  instanced  in  Raffaelle's  "  Disputa  del  Sacra- 

B 


2  BRITISH     PAINTERS. 

mento  "  of  the  Florentine  School,  and  then  to  Veronese's  "  Marriage  in  Cana  " 
of  the  Venetian  School ;  if,  lastly,  we  pass  on  to  Turner  in  our  own  day — 
Turner  who  will  be  more  fully  appreciated  in  days  to  come — it  will  not, 
indeed,  be  hard  to  trace  the  working  of  the  great  law  of  progress  in  Art. 

A  curious,  and,  we  venture  to  think,  a  satisfactory  feature  of  the  century 
is  the  distaste  for  historical  paintings.  The  realistic  movement,  which,  fed  on 
science,  has  attacked  even  theology  in  her  strongholds,  is  slowly  leaving  a 
deep  impression  on  Art  too.  To  the  sagacious  observer,  bent  on  reading  the 
future  of  the  brush  and  easel,  we  can  imagine  no  more  profitable  or  attractive 
study  than  a  careful  examination  of  the  works  of  the  great  painters  of  the 
century  in  England  and  America :  in  America,  the  land  of  progress,  where 
conventionalities  are  stripped  off  and  torn  to  rags ;  and  on  the  eastern  side  of 
the  Atlantic,  where  an  hereditary  House  of  Lords  is  still  the  figure  of  a 
firmness  and  consistency  such  as  only  China  can  rival. 

It  is  impossible  to  help  feeling  how  great  a  stride  one  century  has  witnessed 
in  the  matter  of  landscape  painting.  A  century  ago  Richard  Wilson  was 
failing  to  earn  his  bread  in  London  by  this  special  branch  of  Art;  in  the 
present  day  the  great  school  of  American  painters,  with  such  men  as  Richards 
and  Bristol  in  their  midst,  has  earned  for  itself  deserved  praise  for  its  faithful 
and  original  portraiture  of  the  natural  wonders  of  what  was  so  long  called 
the  "Afew  World." 

Between  the  time  of  Phidias  and  the  date  at  which  the  Italian  masters 
flourished,  the  world  advanced  many  a  slow  step  in  progress  ;  but  that 
advance  is  nothing  compared  with  what  has  taken  place  between  the  time  of 
Raphael  and  our  own  day.  Whether  the  progress  of  Art  shall  be  identified 
more  or  less  nearly  with  either  that  of  civilisation  or  of  human  thought  is 
for  each  man  to  decide  ;  but  we  are  not  to  suppose  that  because  Art  progress 
has  been  slow,  it  will  therefore  be  uniform ;  on  the  contrary,  we  must  be  fully 
alive  to  important  and  perhaps  speedy  future  developments,  which  may  even 
now  be  shadowed  forth — dimly  perhaps,  but  not  beyond  the  view  of  the 
sagacious  and  attentive  observer. 

At  the  time  when  the  Peace  of  Utrecht  was  closing  the  war  of  the  Spanish 
succession,  a  remarkable  man  was  working  as  apprentice  to  a  silversmith 
in  London.  William  Hogarth  (b.  1697,  d.  1764)  has  been  justly  called 
the  Founder  of  the  British  School  of  Art.     For  more   than  a  century  the 


SIR    JOSHUA     REYNOLDS.  3 

foreign  fashions  of  the  Stuarts,  and  the  political  excitement  to  which  their 
misgovernment  had  given  rise,  had  choked  down  strivings  after  the  original 
and  the  real  in  Art.  So  long  as  this  state  of  things  continued  the  strength 
of  the  national  character  could  not  speak  through  the  canvas,  and  a  reallj^ 
national  school  of  painting  was  impossible.  A  powerful  combination  was 
needed  to  dissipate  such  apathy.  Hogarth  was  two  things,  a  born  artist,  and 
an  Englishman  to  the  backbone.  How  the  artists  combined  in  London  and 
also  in  Edinburgh  is  not  a  new  story  to  tell  :  four  years  after  Hogarth's 
death  the  Royal  Academy  was  founded  in  London.  True,  at  the  present 
day  it  is  the  fashion  to  condemn  the  Academy  system  of  teaching,  and  unques- 
tionably a  narrow-mindedness,  natural  where  a  body  of  men  has  been  selected 
entirely  from  the  ranks  of  one  profession,  has  been  at  times  manifested  by 
the  Academicians ;  yet  second  thoughts  will  remind  us  how  this  body,  more 
than  sixty  years  before  the  Reform  Bill  was  forced  on  the  legislature  of  the 
country,  by  holding  out  a  helping  hand  to  young  artists,  often  enabled  them  to 
stand  on  their  own  merits ;  whereas  formerly  their  success  too  often  depended 
on  the  capricious  ignorance  or  vicious  taste  of  some  half- foreign  nobleman. 

Next  to  Hogarth  in  chronological  order  comes  Richard  Wilson  (b.  17 14, 
d.  1782).  In  his  work  we  may  see  the  new  order  of  things  struggling  out  of 
the  old.  Many  of  his  landscapes  are  very  beautiful ;  but  they  are  Italian, 
not  English.     Wilson  was  the  slave  of  Poussin  and  Claude. 


'to^ 


Less  than  thirty  years  after  Hogarth,  and  within  four  years  of  each  other, 
were  born  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  (b.  1723,  d.  1792)  and  Thomas  Gains- 
borough (b.  1727,  d.  1788).  Reynolds  has  been  accused  of  devotion  to 
portrait  painting  as  being  the  most  profitable  branch  of  his  art,  but  the  excel- 
lence of  his  works  has  long  ago  rendered  it  unnecessary  to  dwell  on  such  a 
charge.  He  has  been  often  placed  in  the  position  of  honour  among  English 
painters,  and  indeed  many  of  his  works  are  entitled  to  rank  with  those  of 
Titian  and  Van  Dyck.  Portrait-painting  at  the  present  time  holds  a  far  less 
conspicuous  position  than  it  did  ;  and  that  a  very  inferior  man  should,  as  had 
so  often  happened,  be  honoured  and  held  up  to  notice  by  being  selected  as 
Court  painter  became  an  impossibility  from  the  moment  that  Reynolds 
accepted  the  office. 


BRITISH     PAINTERS. 


Gainsborough  won  his  reputation  by  painting  portraits,  and  his  land- 
scapes have  helped  to  sustain  it  up  to  the  present  time :  it  is  well  known 
that  a  picture  assigned  to  him  recently  fetched  over^  10,000. 


Benjamin  West  (b.  1738,  d.  1820)  and  Sir  T.  Lawrence  (b.  1769, 
d.  1830)  deserve  passing  mention  here:  the  former,  by  birth  an  American, 
an  artist  whose  repute  was  greatly  in  excess  of  his  powers ;  the  latter  a 
fashionable  rather  than  a  great  painter.  Taking  up  the  thread  from  about  the 
end  of  the  eighteenth  centur}',  it  is  with  Turner  that  the  present  work  com- 
mences ;  at  this  point  we  leave  the  reader  to  gather  for  himself  a  more 
detailed  knowledge  of  the  English  School  of  this  century.  The  first  efforts 
towards  originality,  and  the  gradual  upheaval  and  penetration  through  the 
dense  stratum  of  popular  opinion,  have  been  briefly  noticed ;  we  are  now  to 
see  what  has  been  built  on  the  new  foundation.. 


Few,  if  any,  painters,  whether  ancient  or  modern,  have  caused  so  much 
discussion  among  Art  critics  as  Turner.  While  some  have  extolled  him  as 
the  greatest  landscape  painter  the  world  has  seen,  others  regard  him  as  little 
better  than  an  artistic  madman  :  he  has  been  the  jest  of  one  party — the  idol 
of  another ;  nor  is  this  much  to  be  wondered  at  if  we  call  to  mind  the 
peculiarity  of  his  works,  as  well  as  their  originality,  for  the  whole  range  of 
Art  history  affords  nothing  analogous  to  them.  Each  succeeding  year,  since 
his  death  in  1851,  has  only  served  to  confirm  our  opinion  :  it  is  no  disparage- 
ment to  the  many  artists  whom  he  has  left  behind  to  affirm  that  we  have  lost 
in  him  the  greatest  landscape  painter  of  ihe  English  School ;  we  shall  scarcely 
say  too  much  if  we  add,  of  any  other,  ancient  or  modern.  We  are  quite 
willing  to  cast  in  our  lot  with  those  who  venerate  his  genius,  though  by  no 
means,  as  some  do,  to  the  entire  exclusion  of  every  other  artist.  It  was  truly 
said  by  an  anonymous  writer  more  than  thirty  years  ago,  that  "  the  glorious 
superstructure  of  the  British  School  of  Landscape,  in  part  erected  by  the 
united  powers  of  Wilson  and  Gainsborough,  has  now  in  our  times  received  its 
final  acme  of  excellence,  its  triumph  of  beauty  and  grandeur,  from  the  genius 
of  Turner." 

Had  Mr.  Ruskin,  in  his  ardent  and  enthusiastic  admiration  of  the  works 


T  U  R  N  E  R.  5 

of  this  painter,  showed  a  more  just  appreciation  of  the  talents  of  his  contem- 
poraries, we  believe  that  Turner  would  have  been  a  considerable  gainer;  but 
the  indiscriminate  laudation  of  his  idol,  at  the  expense  of,  and  in  comparison 
with,  other  artists,  created,  there  is  little  doubt,  a  widespread  feeling  of 
opposition  to  the  opinions  and  sentiments  of  the  author  of  "Modern  Painters," 
and  through  him  to  the  subject  of  his  eulogy.  An  injudicious  friend  often 
inflicts  more  injury  on  the  cause  he  advocates  than  its  avowed  opponents. 

Turner  was  born  in  1775,  in  Maiden  Lane,  Covent  Garden,  where  his 
father  carried  on  business  as  a  hairdresser ;  he  had,  however,  sufiicient 
discrimination  to  allow  his  son  to  follow  the  pursuit  to  which  he  was  most 
inclined.  How  and  where  his  earliest  studies  in  Art  were  carried  on  we  have 
no  precise  information ;  we  only  know  that  he  was  largely  indebted  to 
Dr.  Munro,  who  possessed  an  extensive  collection  of  water-colour  drawings, 
for  permitting  him  to  copy  them  under  his  own  immediate  direction  and 
advice.  The  doctor's  collection  was  rich  in  the  works  of  Paul  Sandby,  Rooker, 
Cozens,  Hearne,  and  others  whose  names  are  now  almost  lost  to  the  public, 
and  in  sketches  by  Gainsborough.  Turner  and  Girtin,  as  well  as  the  late 
John  Varley,  Francia,  Edredge,  &c.,  were  among  the  disciples  of  the  Munro 
School,  as  it  was  called,  and  "  occasionally  copied  and  studied  from  the  same 
prototypes.  From  the  elaborate  and  tasteful  delineations  of  Hearne  and 
Rooker  they  acquired  the  rudiments  of  a  just  and  accurate  insight  into  the 
properties  of  topographical  design ;  and  from  the  drawings  of  Cozens  a 
practical  knowledge  of  breadth  and  simplicity,  united  with  the  charms  of  aerial 
perspective."  To  Turner  and  Girtin,  between  whom  an  honourable  rivalry 
existed — for  both  seemed  equally  gifted  with  genius  and  perception,  and  alike 
endued  with  executive  powers — are  we  chiefly  indebted  for  the  high  position 
which  our  school  of  water-colour  painters  has  reached.  Girtin  unfortunately 
died  at  the  comparatively  early  age  of  twenty-seven,  in  1802.  Had  he  lived  to 
the  years  of  his  fellow-student,  there  is  little  doubt  he  would  have  achieved  a 
reputation  second  only  to  that  of  Turner ;  for  their  merits  were  so  equally 
balanced,  and  the  drawings  of  one  bore  so  close  a  resemblance  to  those  of  the 
other,  that  no  one  who  has  not  very  carefully  studied  the  works  of  both  is  able 
to  distinguish  between  them.  We  are  speaking  of  those  executed  when  the 
artists  were  fellow-pupils,  or  soon  after  that  time,  for  Girtin  in  his  latter  years 
launched  out  into  a  more  free  and  a  bolder  style  than  Turner  did  at  the  same 
period  ;  while  the  drawings  of  Turner  during  the  last  thirty  or  forty  years  of 


6  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

his  life  are  as  unlike  his  own  earlier  productions  as  the}'  are  to  those  of  any- 
other  painter :  latterly 

"  None  but  himself  could  be  his  parallel." 

Turner  exhibited  two  drawings  at  the  Royal  Academy  in  1787,  when  only 
twelve  years  old.  He  entered  the  schools  of  that  institution  in  1789,  and  in  the 
following  year  sent  a  drawing  in  water  colours  to  the  Exhibition — the  subject  a 
view  on  the  Thames,  taken  from  the  banks  of  the  river,  nearly  opposite  the 
episcopal  palace  at  Lambeth  :  three  years  afterwards  he  contributed  his  first 
painting  in  oil.  Two  pictures  he  exhibited  in  1800  attracted  great  attention — 
the  "  Falls  of  the  Clyde  "  and  the  "  Tenth  Plague  of  Egypt."  Though  very 
dissimilar  in  character,  yet  both  were  distinguished  by  masterly  treatment. 
To  show  how  varied  were  the  subjects  painted  by  him  in  the  early  part  of  his 
career,  we  would  instance  a  picture  which  many  years  ago  was  in  the  collection 
of  Lord  de  Tabley ;  it  represented  a  blacksmith's  shop,  in  which  was  a  butcher, 
who  appeared  to  be  disputing  with  the  owner  of  the  forge  his  charge  for 
shoeing  a  pony.  All  the  implements  used  by  the  smith  were  introduced  with 
remarkable  truth  and  firmness  of  painting,  while  in  the  foreground  of  the 
picture  were  groups  of  poultry,  finished  almost  as  highly  as  if  they  had  come 
from  the  pencil  of  Hondekoeter  or  Jan  Fyt. 

An  Art  critic  *  of  some  eminence  writes  in  the  following  terms.  "  There 
were  two  great  periods,"  he  says,  "in  Turner's  life — the  former,  during 
which  he  painted  what  he  saw ;  the  latter,  during  which  he  painted  what  he 
imagined."  The  earlier  works  of  this  master  are  less  often  studied  than  the 
productions  of  his  later  years.  Mr.  John  Burnet's  criticism  must  be  quoted  : 
— "  The  early  compositions  of  Turner  are  of  a  simpler  character,  and  contain 
fewer  parts  than  his  later  works  :  this  not  only  arises  from  his  being  engaged 
on  representations  of  extensive  scenery,  such  as  the  embellishment  of  engraved 
subjects  demanded — where  a  multitude  of  objects  was  required  to  be  given  in 
a  small  space — but  also  from  his  changing  his  conduct  of  light  and  shade 
from  a  breadth  of  shadow  to  a  breadth  of  light,  which  gradually  expanded  to 
almost  a  want  of  solidity  in  his  last  paintings ;  this  was  also  the  reason  for 
adopting  a  more  brilliant  style  of  colour^for  objects  to  be  rendered  sufficiently 
distinct,  without  cutting  up  the  breadth  of  light,  could  only  be  produced  by 
the  contact  of  hot  and  cold  colours.      In  these  pictures  he  more  resembles 

*  Mr.  S.  C.  Hall. 


C  O  A'  STAB  I.  E.  7 

Wilson  and  Claude  than  in  his  later  pictures,  both  on  account  of  largeness 
of  forms  and  his  breadth  of  shadow." 

In  the  year  1800  Turner  was  elected  Associate  of  the  Royal  Academy, 
and  two  years  afterwards,  at  the  early  age  of  twenty-seven,  an  Academician. 
Such  a  raj)id  rise  to  the  full  honours  of  the  Academy  has,  we  believe,  no 
parallel  in  its  history. 

The  election  of  the  great  landscape  painter  in  1807  to  the  post  of 
Professor  of  Perspective  was  by  no  means  a  happy  choice.  Illiterate  and 
unable  to  lecture.  Turner  did  not  take  long  to  discover  his  own  unfitness. 

He  travelled  extensively  on  the  continent.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to 
mention  the  "Scenery  of  the  Southern  Coast,"  &c.,  so  well  is  this  known. 
His  great  work,  the  "  Liber  Studiorum,"  was  commenced  in  1808. 

Turner  bequeathed  a  magnificent  collection  of  his  works  to  the  nation,  and 
it  is  now  to  be  found  in  the  National  Gallery,  London.  The  fortune  of 
_;^ 200,000,  which  by  his  untiring  industry  he  had  accumulated,  was  left  for 
the  purpose  of  founding  a  home  for  decayed  artists  ;  but  owing  to  some  flaw  in 
his  will,  his  wish  could  not  be  carried  out. 

For  a  complete  criticism  of  Turner's  paintings  we  may  refer  to  the  works  of 
Mr.  Ruskin.  Mr.  Walter  Thornbury's  Life  of  the  artist,  published  in  England 
some  years  ago,  contains  ample  information  as  to  his  domestic  life  and 
personal  character. 


One  of  the  first  names  that  added  lustre  to  our  school  of  painting,  after 
it  really  merited  such  an  appellation,  is  that  of  John  Constable,  born  in  1776, 
at  East  Bergholt,  in  Suffolk.  He  used  to  say  that  "  the  scenes  of  his  boy- 
hood made  him  an  artist,"  and  this  we  can  readily  believe  of  any  one  in 
whom  nature  has  implanted  an  intuitive  love  of  Art.  We  know  the  country 
well  amid  which  Constable  was  reared,  and  perhaps  a  more  genial  locality 
to  create  a  painter  and  to  foster  his  inclinations  cannot  be  seen  in  all 
England. 

Constable's  father  was  an  opulent  miller,  and  was  most  desirous  that  his 
son  John,  one  of  three  boys,  should  enter  the  Church  ;  but  finding  him  dis- 
inclined to  this,  he  proposed  to  him  that  he  should  follow  his  own  business, 
and  for  about  a  year  after  leaving  school  the  future  artist  applied  himself  to 
the  duties  of  the   mill,  frequently,  however,   relieving  the  monotony  of  his 


8  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

occupation  by  studying,  to  use  his  own  expression,  the  "natural  history  of 
the  skies;  "  for  the  painter's  art  was  already  working-  in  him,  and  while  yet 
at  school  he  had  become  acquainted  with  the  only  individual  in  the  parish 
who  could  offer  him  the  least  assistance  in  his  favourite  pursuit — one  John 
Dunthorne,  a  painter  and  glazier,  and  a  man  rather  above  his  station.  With 
Dunthorne  the  lad  was  accustomed  to  pass  much  of  his  leisure  time  in 
painting  landscapes  from  nature.  Notwithstanding  the  father's  disinclina- 
tion to  an  artist's  life,  Mrs.  Constable  having  procured  for  her  son  an 
introduction  to  Sir  George  Beaumont,  whose  mother  resided  at  Dedham, 
near  Bergholt,  John  was  permitted,  in  1795,  to  come  to  London,  "  for  the 
purpose,"  as  Mr.  Leslie  says,  in  his  "  Memoirs  of  Constable,"  "  of  ascer- 
taining what  might  be  his  chance  of  success  as  a  painter."  From  that 
period  till  February,  1799,  he  appears  to  have  passed  his  time  alternately 
in  the  metropolis  and  in  his  native  place,  sometimes  working  at  his  easel  and 
sometimes  in  the  mill,  the  latter  yet  seeming  to  be  the  point  to  which  his 
parents  wished  his  energies  to  be  directed ;  for  at  the  end  of  October,  1797, 
his  mother  writes  thus  to  a  friend  in  London — Mr.  John  Smith,  the  author 
of  the  "Life  of  Nollekens,"  with  whom  her  son  was  intimate: — "We  are 
anticipating  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  John  at  home  in  the  course  of  a  week 
or  ten  days,  to  which  I  look  forward  with  the  hope  that  he  will  attend  to 
business,  by  which  he  will  please  his  father,  and  insure  his  own  respectability 
and  comfort."  It  was  not,  however,  to  be  thus,  for  in  1799  he  was  admitted  a 
student  in  the  Royal  Academy. 

Yet,  notwithstanding  the  kind  and  approving  words  which  had  been 
addressed  to  him,  and  the  associations  of  friendship  he  had  formed  with 
people  of  position,  he  made  at  first  but  little  progress  towards  popularity; 
there  was  something  so  new  in  the  style  he  had  adopted,  and  perhaps, 
therefore,  so  unintelligible  to  those  who  could  only  understand  what  they 
had  been  accustomed  to,  that  we  can  scarcely  wonder  at  the  neglect  he 
experienced. 

From  the  year  1814  to  1819  the  life  of  this  artist  presented  an  "even 
tenour,"  though  he  was  certainly  advancing  in  popular  favour.  In  18 16  he 
married  the  daughter  of  Mr.  C.  Bicknell,  then  Solicitor  to  the  Admiralty ; 
and  in  1819  his  "View  on  the  River  Stour  "  attracted  so  much  attention  as 
to  cause  him  to  be  elected  an  Associate  of  the  Academ.y.  In  1829  he  was 
elected  a  full  member,  for  his  reputation  had  not  only  circulated  through  his 


THE  LOCK. 
From  a  Painting  hy  y'uhn  C'viistabU',  R.yl. 


THE  CORN-FIELD. 

From  a  raMlng  hy  yohn  Comtahle,  R.A. 


C  A  I.  L  C  0  T  T.  9 

own  countr}',  but  had  extended  to  France  and  Germany.  From  that  time 
his  fame  increased  continuously,  even  after  his  death,  which  took  place  in 
1837.  Of  the  two  pictures  which  we  have  selected  as  examples  of  Constable's 
style,  the  engravings  by  Mr.  Lucas  are  well  known.  "The  Corn-field"  is 
undoubtedly  one  of  the  artist's  finest  works.  Time — as  Constable  said  it 
would — has  greatly  modified  the  spotted  appearance  he  gave  to  his  paintings ; 
those  spots  have  since  become  "lights"  in  harmony  with  the  rest  of  the 
colouring.  We  must  admit,  however,  that  some  of  the  shadows  are  now 
blacker  than  they  were  originally,  and  consequently  impart  a  heaviness  to  the 
works. 

We  remember  Constable  well,  having  had  the  honour  of  his  acquaintance 
when  he  resided  in  Charlotte  Street,  Fitzroy  Square,  about  the  year  1830. 
He  was  in  person  tall ;  his  countenance  was  remarkably  expressive — full  of 
kindliness  and  goodness  ;  in  look  and  manner  he  was  suave,  yet  manifesting 
energy  and  movement,  and  conveying  to  the  merest  observer  a  conviction  of 
the  genius  he  undoubtedly  possessed.  If,  as  with  many  painters  of  the  past 
epoch,  it  was  not  his  destiny  to  be  estimated  by  his  own  age  according  to 
his  worth,  his  works  are  now  largely  valued  ;  and  when  any  of  undoubted 
authenticity  (for  forgeries  are  abundant)  are  oftered  for  sale,  they  realise 
very  high  prices  :  perhaps  ten  times  the  amount  which  the  painter  received 
for  them.  Such  is  the  recompense  too  often  accorded  to  the  artist;  the 
trumpet  of  fame  sounds  only  when  "the  ear  is  deaf  to  the  voice  of  the 
charmer." 

The  reader  who  feels  a  special  interest  in  this  great  artist  will  do  well  to 
consult  the  Life  of  him  which  has  been  left  us  by  C.  R.  Leslie,  R.  A. 


Music  and  Painting  have  through  a  long  series  of  years  found  their  homes 
in  two  families  allied  by  marriage,  and  residing  in  a  locality  whose  name,  to 
those  unacquainted  with  the  spot,  would  seem  to  have  but  little  harmonious 
association  with  the  Arts  of  any  kind.  Kensington  Gravel  Pits — such  is  the 
place  alluded  to — whatever  it  may  have  been  in  days  of  yore,  is  now  adorned 
with  some  venerable  mansions,  such  as  in  the  present  day  are  rarely  to  be 
found  in  the  suburbs  of  London.  Here,  or  in  the  immediate  vicinity,  for  a 
period  extending  to  nearly  a  century,  lived,  or  now  live.  Dr.  Callcott,  William 
Horsley,  and  William  Hutchins  Callcott — names  well  known  to  every  lover  of 

c 


10  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

genuine  English  vocal  compositions — Sir  Augustus  Callcott,  and  John  Callcott 
Horsley,  the  Royal  Academician.  Sir  Augustus  Callcott  was  born  in 
1779,  at  Kensington  Gravel  Pitts,  and  resided  there  all  his  life,  a  period  of 
nearly  sixty-six  years.  He  gave  early  indication  of  a  taste  for  the  Fine  Arts 
in  general,  but  in  consequence,  it  may  be  presumed,  of  his  relationship  to 
Dr.  Callcott,  his  brother,  he  chose  music  as  a  profession,  and  for  some  years 
officiated  in  the  choir  of  Westminster  Abbey,  under  the  late  Dr.  Cooke. 
Whether  or  not  he  employed  his  pencil  during  this  time  we  are  unable  to 
state,  but  before  he  had  reached  his  twentieth  year  he  had  studied  portrait 
painting  under  Hoppner,  and  had  exhibited  a  portrait  which  augured  con- 
siderable success  in  this  department  of  Art ;  but  he  very  soon  turned  his 
attention  to  landscape,  and  frequently  was  heard  to  say  that  he  was  greatly 
induced  to  change  his  practice  from  seeing  Stothard's  charming  designs  to 
•'  Robinson  Crusoe." 

It  was,  we  believe,  in  1803  that  Callcott  made  his  debut  as  a  landscape 
painter,  and  here  he  was  so  successful  that,  four  years  afterwards,  he  was 
elected  an  Associate  of  the  Ro3^al  Academy.  In  18 10  he  became  a  Member, 
sending  his  "Morning  "  as  his  diploma  picture.  The  highest  honour  of  the 
profession  was  thus  rapidly  attained,  and  never  was  it  more  worthily  bestowed  ; 
while  the  admiration  his  pictures  excited,  and  his  inestimable  private  character, 
procured  for  him  the  friendship  and  encouragement  of  all  the  distinguished 
patrons  and  lovers  of  Art  of  his  time.  In  1827  Callcott  married  the  widow  of 
Captain  Graham,  R.N.,  and  daughter  of  Admiral  Dundas,  a  lady  whose 
extensive  erudition  and  writings  gave  her  a  distinguished  place  in  public 
favour.  She  had  formerly  resided  during  two  years  in  India,  and  for  some 
time  in  Italy :  after  her  return  from  the  latter  country  she  wrote  "  Three 
Months  in  the  Environs  of  Rome,"  and  "  Memoirs  of  Nicholas  Poussin  :  " 
her  valuable  "  Essays  towards  the  History  of  Painting  "  appeared  in  1836. 
With  her  he  visited  Germany,  the  Tyrol,  and  Italy,  and  applied  to  the  scenes 
of  nature  and  works  of  Art,  to  which  his  travels  introduced  him,  the  cultivated 
perceptions  of  a  mind  ever  alive  to  the  suggestions  derivable  from  both.  It 
was  this  habit  of  constant  and  watchful  observance  that  gave  to  his  conversa- 
tion such  an  interest,  and  to  his  criticism  so  much  worth,  from  its  truth  and 
discrimination. 

In  1837  her  Majesty  was  graciously  pleased  to  confer  on  Mr.  Callcott  the 
honour  of  knighthood,  as  an  especial  mark  of  his  sovereign's   recognition  of 


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RAFFAELLE  AND  THE   FORNARINA. 
From  a  Painting  hy  Sir  Aiigiisliis  IJ'a/l  Cailcott,  R.A. 


C  A  L  L  C  O  r  T.  , , 

his  merits  as  a  painter,  and  of  his  personal  excellencies.  In  1843  her 
Majesty  gave  another  testimony  of  royal  approbation,  by  appointing  him 
Keeper  of  the  Royal  Collections  of  Pictures,  an  office  then  vacant  by  the 
death  of  Mr.  Seguier.  At  the  time  this  appointment  was  made  Sir  A.  W. 
Callcott  was  sinking  under  the  pressure  of  disease,  and,  actuated  by  delicate 
and  honourable  feeling,  he  hesitated  to  accept  so  important  and  onerous  a 
post ;  but,  as  both  the  Queen  and  Prince  Albert  graciously  expressed  a  wish 
that  his  state  of  health  should  not  interfere  with  the  acceptance  of  the  trust, 
his  scruples  were  removed.  In  the  due  arrangement  and  classification  of 
those  treasures  of  Art  which  form  the  Royal  Galleries  he  was  sedulously 
employed  till  death  terminated  his  labours,  after  an  illness  of  many  years' 
duration,  which  was  interrupted  only  by  short  intervals  of  comparative  health, 
that  excited  the  hopes,  though  they  scarcely  allayed  the  fears,  of  his  numerous 
friends  and  admirers.  He  died  on  the  25th  of  November,  184/I,  and  was 
buried  at  Kensal  Green. 

Callcott  was  a  large  and  constant  contributor  to  the  Royal  Academy,  \exy 
frequently  sending  the  total  number  of  eight  paintings,  to  which  the  rules  of 
the  Academy  limit  every  exhibitor,  and  his  pictures  were,  in  general,  readily 
recognised  by  his  pure  and  delicate  colouring.  The  works  of  a  landscape 
painter  scarcely  admit  of  so  detailed  a  criticism  as  do  those  of  a  painter  of 
history  or  of  genre  subjects.  The  scene  of  "  Rotterdam  "  is  familiar  to  many 
a  traveller.  To  an  Englishman- crossing  from  Harwich  on  his  way  into 
Germany,  the  old  Dutch  town  presents  many  an  amusing  or  interesting 
spectacle — canals,  market-boats,  the  quaint  dresses  of  the  women  and 
children  :  Callcott  had  pre-eminently  the  power  of  showing  on  the  canvas  the 
placidity  and  tranquillity  of  such  a  scene.  This  picture  belongs  to  about  1830. 
His  favourite  themes  were  those  wherein  water  occupied  a  prominent  place ; 
and  many  of  his  most  charming  pictures  were  made  up  of  coast  scenes  :  it  was 
Sydney  Smith,  we  believe,  who  christened  him  "  Seashore  Callcott."  He 
very  rarely  attempted  figure  subjects,  strictly  so  called;  but  in  1832  he 
exhibited  a  picture  of  "  Italian  Girls  going  in  Procession  to  their  First  Com- 
munion," and  in  the  following  year  "  Shepherd  Boys  with  their  Dogs."  But 
his  most  important  work  of  this  character  was  "  Raffaelle  and  the  Fornarina," 
exhibited  in  1837,  and  engraved  by  the  Art  Union  of  London,  and  which  we 
have  introduced  here  as  an  example  of  Callcott's  ability  to  treat  the  historical 
class  of  subject. 


12  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Callcott  has  been  called  the  modern  Claude ;  so  also  has  Turner  ;  but 
Callcott's  works,  both  in  composition  and  colour,  bear  a  closer  resemblance 
to  Claude's  than  do  those  of  Turner.  His  distances  are  deficient  in  the 
space  we  find  in  the  landscapes  of  the  old  master,  but  the  aerial  perspective 
is  exquisitely  rendered,  and  the  general  effect  of  the  distance  more  pleasing. 
He  was  a  close  imitator  of  nature,  observing  her  with  the  eye  of  a  true  poet, 
while  he  interpreted  her  with  the  most  exact  fidelity.  "With  a  fine  feeling," 
says  Dr.  Waagen,  "  for  the  picturesque  in  conception,  he  unites  a  delicacy  of 
drawing  most  favourably  seen  in  his  figures  and  animals,  which  are  most 
tastefully  introduced.  In  his  earlier  pictures,  the  colouring  is  powerful,  and 
often  warm  ;  in  his  later,  rather  too  uniformly  cool,  and  sometimes  almost 
insipid.  His  execution  is  spirited  and  careful."  The  critic,  when  he  spoke 
of  "  insipidity,"  was  unconscious  amid  how  much  personal  suffering,  and 
consequent  mental  prostration,  these  works  were  frequently  produced.  His 
pictures,  many  of  which  were  publicly  exhibited  after  his  death,  are  to  be 
found  in  every  English  private  gallery  of  any  repute. 

High  as  Callcott  stood  in  public  estimation  as  an  artist,  those  who  had 
the  pleasure  of  his  personal  acquaintance  held  him  in  still  higher  regard. 
His  private  character  exhibited  many  of  the  most  beautiful  traits  which 
pertain  to  the  excellent  of  the  earth — kindness,  gentleness,  benevolence, 
uprightness  ;  he  was  literally  a  father  to  the  fatherless,  and  a  man  of  warm 
and  generous  feeling,  showing  itself  in  deeds  of  charity,  the  result  of  prin- 
ciple, not  of  impulse  :  his  memory  is  revered  by  all  who  knew  him. 

David  Wilkie  was  born  November  i8th,  1785,  at  the  little  village  of  Cults, 
near  Cupar,  Fifeshire,  of  which  place  his  father  was  the  minister — a  good  and 
devout  man,  whose  spiritual  teachings  "pointed  to  heaven,"  while  his  life 
and  conduct  "  led  the  way."  At  a  very  early  age  we  hear  of  the  boy's 
being  at  school  in  the  neighbouring  village  of  Pitlessie,  and  of  his  exhibiting 
an  ardent  love  of  Art :  his  schoolfellows  were  sometimes  his  models,  and  his 
studio  was  the  schoolroom.  On  other  occasions  he  made — unknown,  of  course, 
to  his  excellent  father — the  church  his  studio,  and  some  of  the  most  striking 
figures  of  the  congregation,  intent  on  the  minister's  sermon,  his  models. 
His  gatherings  were  universal,  his  school  everywhere,  and  his  studies  indif- 
ferently the  men  and  things  around  him  ;  and  in  the  absence  of  fitting  subjects 
he  even  studied  from  himself 


W I  L  K  I  E.  I J 

At  twelve  years  of  age  he  was  removed  to  the  grammar  school  of  Kettle,  but 
here  also  his  preceptor  was  unable  to  keep  him  assiduously  to  his  tasks  :  after 
eighteen  months  his  father  took  him  away,  and  unwillingly  consented  to  allow 
the  boy  to  follow  his  self-chosen  profession.  In  1 779  Wilkie  left  home  for  Edin- 
burgh, taking  w'ith  him  some  drawings  and  a  letter  of  introduction  from  the  Earl 
ofLeven  to  Mr.  Thompson,  then  secretary  of  the  "Trustees'  Academy."  Among 
his  fellow-students  there  were  Sir  W.  Allen,  Alexander  Eraser,  and  John  Burnet, 
the  eminent  engraver,  who  often  narrated  to  the  writer  anecdotes-  of  Wilkie. 
Mr.  Burnet  says  of  him,  with  reference  to  this  early  period,  "  In  that  sort  of 
drawine  in  which  taste  and  knowledg^e  are  united  he  was  far  behind  others 
who,  without  a  tithe  of  his  talent,  stood  in  the  same  class.  Though  behind  in 
skill,  he,  however,  surpassed,  and  that  from  the  first,  all  his  companions  in 
comprehending  the  character  of  whatever  he  was  set  to  draw." 

The  "  Trustees'  Academy"  was  not  an  institution  for  education  in  the  Eine 
Arts,  but  was  rather  a  school  of  design  for  manufacturing  purposes :  however, 
young  Wilkie  appears  to  have  gained,  in  1803,  the  ten-guinea  premium  for 
the  best  painting — the  subject,  "  Calisto  in  the  Bath  of  Diana."  In  1804  he 
left  the  academy  and  returned  home ;  but  before  his  departure  he  had  made 
the  sketches  for  his  picture  of  the  "  Village  Politicians."  While  at  home  he 
painted  the  first  of  those  works  by  which  he  earned  his  great  reputation, 
"Pitlessie  Eair." 

He  arrived  unfriended  and  unknown  in  the  great  metropolis  in  1805,  and 
was  compelled,  as  many  other  clever  young  artists  have  too  often  been,  to 
adopt  the  readiest  and  most  simple  means  of  disposing  of  his  productions  : 
the  "  Village  Recruit"  was  exhibited  for  sale  in  the  window  of  a  frame-maker 
at  Charing  Cross,  where  it  soon  found  a  purchaser  at  the  price  of  £t.  More 
pictures  were  disposed  of  through  the  same  agency,  and  by  these  and  other 
means  he  was  enabled  to  maintain  himself  while  pursuing  his  studies  in  the 
Royal  Academy,  into  the  schools  of  which  he  obtained  admission  soon  after 
his  arrival  in  London.  Wilkie' s  first  patron  here  was  the  late  \Villiam 
Stodart,  the  well-known  pianoforte  manufacturer.  Among  those  to  whom 
Wilkie  had  been  introduced  by  Stodart  was  the  Earl  of  Mansfield,  who, 
when  he  saw  the  sketch  of  the  "  Village  Politicians,"  requested  that  a  picture 
might  be  painted  from  it.  The  picture  was  finished,  and  exhibited  at  the 
Royal  Academy  in  1806,  where  it  excited  universal  admiration.  It  is  said 
to  have  had    its  origin   in   the  "  ale  caup    commentators,"    introduced    by 


14  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

MacNeill  in  his  ballad  of  "  Will  and  Jean,"  and  excited  no  little  curiosity 
among-  the  connoisseurs  of  the  metropolis,  and  some  animadversion  among 
the  artists,  especially  the  Academicians :  Northcote  designated  it  the 
"pauper  style,"  and  Fuseli,  meeting  young  Wilkie,  who  was  then  only  in 
his  twenty-first  year,  said  to  him,  "Young  man,  that  is  a  dangerous  work. 
That  picture  will  either  prove  the  most  unhappy  or  the  most  fortunate  work  of 
your  life:  "  it  turned  out  to  be  the  latter,  and  determined  the  artist's  future 
destiny.  Wilkie  never  was  a  promising  young  artist,  but  came  at  once  before  the 
public  a  Diastcr,  and  an  originator  of  a  style.  It  is  possible  that  Wilkie, 
while  in  Edinburgh,  may  have  seen  pictures  by  some  of  the  Dutch  painters, 
as  Teniers,  Ostade,  and  others  of  the  same  class,  which  may  have  fixed  his 
purpose,  though  they  never  could  have  created  it ;  his  peculiarity  was  innate, 
as  his  first  childish  attempts  at  drawing  testify :  neither  was  he  in  any  degree 
a  copyist  of  those  Dutch  artists  ;  in  colour,  in  character,  and  in  feeling  his 
pictures  are  truly  original. 

The  "Village  Politicians"  was  followed  by  the  "Blind  Fiddler,"  painted 
for  Sir  George  Beaumont  in  1806.  It  was  exhibited  in  1807,  and  is  now  one 
of  the  British  gems  in  our  National  Gallery.  Sir  George  was  not  only  one  of 
Wilkie's  earliest  patrons,  but  proved  to  him  a  true  friend  and  judicious 
counsellor  till  death  separated  them.  The  "  Rent  Day,"  engraved  in  this 
work,  was  painted  for  the  late  Earl  of  Mulgrave  in  1807,  for  the  sum  of 
300  guineas.  After  the  death  of  his  lordship  the  picture  was,  with  others, 
offered  for  sale  at  Christie  and  Manson's,  but  was  bought  in  by  the  Earl's 
family  at  the  price  of  750  guineas.  "The  Card  Players,"  painted  for  the 
late  Duke  of  Gloucester  in  1808,  and  for  which  the  artist  received  50  guineas, 
was  sold  by  the  Duchess  at  a  subsequent  period  to  Mr.  Bredel  for  500  guineas. 
We  mention  these  facts  for  the  purpose  of  showing  what  insignificant  sums 
Wilkie  received  for  many  of  his  best  pictures,  compared  with  the  prices  that 
artists  now  ask  and  receive  for  their  works. 

In  1 809  Wilkie  was  elected  Associate  of  the  Royal  Academy  :  he  was 
then  but  twenty-four  years  of  age,  and  had  only  exhibited  four  seasons. 
Two  years  afterwards  he  was  chosen  Academician.  In  May,  181 2,  he  opened 
an  exhibition  of  all  his  pictures,  twenty-nine  in  number,  including  sketches, 
from  which  he  expected  to  derive  considerable  profit ;  but  the  expenses  of  the 
exhibition  exceeded  the  receipts,  so  that  though  it  added  to  his  reputation  it 
impoverished  his  purse. 


»'//.  K  I  E.  IS 

It  is  quite  impossible,  in  our  allotted  space,  to  enumerate  all  the  pictures 
he  painted  of  those  subjects  upon  which  his  fame  will  ever  most  firmly  rest. 
We  can  only  point  out  a  few  of  the  more  popular: — "  Blindman's  Buff," 
painted  in  1813,  for  the  Prince  Regent;  "Distraining  for  Rent,"  in  1814,  for 
the  Directors  of  the  British  Institution;  the  "Breakfast,"  in  1816,  for  the 
Marquis  of  Stafford  ;  the  "  Penny  Wedding,"  in  1818,  for  the  Prince  Regent; 
in  1820,  the  "  Reading  of  the  Will,"  for  the  then  King  of  Bavaria,  from 
whom  the  artist  received  450  guineas  as  its  price  :  after  the  death  of  the 
monarch  it  was  purchased  by  his  successor,  Louis  I.,  at  the  sum  of  1,000 
guineas;  it  is  now  in  the  royal  gallery  at  Schleissheim.  In  1821  he  com- 
pleted the  "Chelsea  Pensioners,"  commenced  in  18 17,  for  the  Duke  of 
Wellington. 

On  the  death  of  Sir  Henry  Raeburn  in  1803,  Wilkie  was  appointed 
"  Limner  to  the  King  in  Scotland."  A  few  years  after  this  he  changed  both 
his  subjects  and  his  style  of  execution.  In  his  own  peculiar  manner  he  was 
without  a  rival ;  in  that  he  adopted  after  the  year  1818  he  had  many  superiors. 

The  death  of  his  mother  and  of  one  of  his  brothers  in  1824  was  a  terrible 
loss  to  the  artist,  whose  own  health  was  at  this  period  in  a  very  declining 
state.  It  was  deemed  advisable  that  he  should  abstain  from  severe  labours, 
and  seek  the  benefits  of  change  of  air  and  scene.  Accompanied  by  a  friend 
and  a  relative,  he  set  out,  in  the  summer  of  1825,  for  Paris,  and  thence  pro- 
ceeded through  Switzerland  to  Italy,  where  he  remained  eight  months.  He 
then  visited  many  of  the  chief  places  in  Germany  where  galleries  of  Art  exist, 
and  returned  to  Italy  for  another  season.  During  this  second  visit  to  Italy  his 
health  began  to  revive,  and  he  painted  three  pictures  at  Rome.  From  Italy 
he  went  through  the  south  of  France;  entered  Spain  in  October,  1827,  and 
travelled  to  Madrid,  where  he  painted  the  "  Spanish  Council  of  War"  and 
the  "  Maid  of  Saragossa;  "  and  returned  to  England  in  the  summer  of  the 
following  year.  In  1836  he  received  the  honour  of  knighthood  from  the 
hand  of  William  IV. 

In  the  autumn  of  1840  he  set  out  upon  a  tour  to  the  East :  he  was  never  to 
return  to  England  again.  Having  reached  Constantinople,  and  painted  a 
portrait  of  the  young  Sultan,  Wilkie  left  the  city  and  proceeded  to  Smyrna 
and  Jerusalem,  whence  he  shortly  afterwards  set  out  for  Alexandria.  Here, 
in  spite  of  an  illness  which  had  lasted  three  months,  he  commenced  a  portrait 
of  Mehemet  Ali  ;    but  this  work  was  not  finished   before   he  embarked   on 


i6  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

the  Oriental  steamer  for  England.  He  expired  on  board  this  vessel,  off 
Gibraltar,  on  the  ist  of  June,  1841. 

There  are  very  few  of  the  multitudinous  admirers  of  Wilkie  who  do  not 
greatly  lament  the  change  in  his  style  produced  by  his  long  residence  on  the 
continent.  Had  we  known  nothing  but  his  later  works,  we  might  not  have 
"  loved  them  less  "  for  their  own  merits;  but,  if  weighed  in  the  balance  with 
those  that  preceded  them,  they  must  be  pronounced  "wanting."  Yet  in 
truth  the  pictures  of  the  two  periods  ought  not  to  be  placed  in  comparison  : 
comparisons  can  only  properly  be  made  between  things  that  are  more  or  less 
alike,  and  Wilkie' s  two  styles  are  as  dissimilar  as  if  they  were  the  productions 
of  two  different  heads  and  hands.  The  principal  characteristics  of  his  latter 
works  are  effect  of  colour  and  chiaroscuro,  which,  with  breadth  and  facility,  he 
appears  to  have  now  considered  the  proper  objects  of  high  Art,  and  an 
advance  beyond  the  truth,  simplicity,  and  character  of  his  earlier  works. 
Writing,  when  in  Spain,  to  a  friend,  he  says,  with  reference  to  this  new  style, 
"  I  have  now,  from  the  study  of  the  old  masters,  adopted  a  bolder,  and,  I 
think,  more  effective  style,  and  one  result  is  rapidity.''''  The  Spanish  and 
Dutch  masters  seem  to  have  been  his  types  rather  than  the  Italian,  for, 
although  he  talked  of  his  imitations  of  Correggio,  his  colouring  and  effect  are 
more  after  the  manner  of  Velasquez  and  Rembrandt.  "  Though  a  whole 
storm  of  criticism  was  poured  upon  his  new  pictures,"  writes  his  biographer, 
Cunningham,  "  and  his  change  of  style,  Wilkie  endured  it  all  with  astonishing 
composure  :  he  had  made  up  his  mind  in  the  matter ;  he  felt  that  if  he 
continued  to  work  in  his  usual  laborious  style  of  detail  and  finish,  he  would 
never  achieve  independence,  nor  add  another  sprig  of  laurel  to  his  wreath  ;  so 
he  resolved  on  fresh  fields  and  pastures  new,  in  spite  of  the  warnings  of  friends 
and  the  admonitions  of  critics." 

The  high  rank  which  Wilkie  attained  in  his  profession ;  the  respect  in 
which  he  was  held  as  a  man,  and  so  truly  merited  ;  his  upright  mind ;  his 
straightforward  honesty ;  his  modest,  yet  moral  courage ;  his  enduring 
friendships ;  his  patient  and  determined  study ;  his  appreciation  of  the 
beautiful ;  his  honour  of  the  true,  show  how  deserving  he  was  of  universal 
homage,  and  how  talent  and  industry,  when  supported  by  such  a  character  as 
the  son  of  the  Scottish  clergyman  brought  into  his  profession,  must  ultimately 
triumph. 

Biographies  of  distinguished  men  are  frequently  written,  and  rewritten, 


HA  YD  ON.  ,7 

till  the  subject  is  almost,  if  not  quite,  exhausted.  Allan  Cunningham  has  done 
this  for  his  friend  and  fellow-countrj-man,  Wilkie;  to  Cunningham's  volumes, 
therefore,  we  must  refer  those  of  our  readers  who  desire  to  know  the  details  of 
a  history  of  which  we  can  only  offer  an  outline. 


About  the  end  of  the  month  of  June,  1846,  the  daily  papers  reported  the 
melancholy  intelligence  that  one  long  known  to  the  public  in  connection  with 
Art  had,  in  an  hour  of  temporary  insanity,  committed  self-destruction.  The 
announcement  was  received  by  his  personal  friends  with  far  more  sorrow 
than  surprise;  and  "Poor  Haydon !  "  was  the  exclamation  which  escaped, 
not  only  from  their  lips,  but  from  the  lips  of  all  to  whom  his  genius  and  his 
conduct  through  life  had  made  his  name  perfectly  familiar.  His  is  a  sad 
history;  yet  on  that  very  account  it  is  fruitful  of  instruction  to  ever}' man 
of  great  intellectual  .powers  who  is  striving  after  true  fame,  and  who  fails 
to  reach  it,  not  on  account  of  his  unworthiness,  but  because  he  seeks  it  by  a 
crooked  and  devious  path,  which  the  world  will  not  recognise  as  the  right 
one.  There  is,  perhaps,  scarcely  a  darker  page  presented  in  the  whole 
annals  of  Art  than  that  afforded  by  the  history  of  this  great  painter — for 
such  he  undoubtedly  was — from  its  commencement  to  its  unhappy  close ; 
and  his  own  pen  has  written  it  in  the  biography  he  has  left  behind  him. 

A  life  so  full  of  sad  and  strange  incident,  of  turmoil  and  conflict,  of 
labour  and  disappointment,  would  necessarily  furnish  ample  materials  for  a 
lengthened  notice  :  our  space  forbids  this  ;  and,  moreover,  the  subject  is  of 
so  painful  a  nature  that  we  feel  no  desire  to  say  more  than  is  just  sufficient 
for  the  purpose  we  have  in  view. 

Benjamin  Robert  Haydon  was  born  at  Plymouth  in  1786.  He  displayed 
at  an  early  age  a  taste  for  the  art  to  which  he  subsequently  attached  him- 
self with  so  much  devoted  but  ill-directed  enthusiasm.  His  father,  a  book- 
seller in  the  town,  cared  little  to  encourage  the  inclination  of  his  son,  but  at 
length  yielded  to  his  wishes,  and  sent  him  in  1804  to  London  ;  not,  however, 
without  the  hope  of  soon  seeing  him  return  to  the  family  roof  In  this  he 
was  to  be  disappointed ;  nor  was  It  very  probable  that  a  young  man  who 
possessed  the  spirit  which  the  following  passage  from  Haydon's  autobio- 
graphy expresses  would  be  easily  turned  aside  from  his  path.  "  The  Sunday 
after  my  arrival,"  he  says,  "  I  went  to  the  new  church  in  the  Strand,  and  In 

D 


,8  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

humbleness  begged  for  the  protection  of  the  Great  Spirit  to  guide,  assist, 
and  bless  my  endeavours ;  to  open  my  mind,  and  enlighten  my  under- 
standing. I  prayed  for  health  of  body  and  mind ;  and  on  my  rising  from 
my  knees  felt  a  breathing  assurance  of  spiritual  aid  which  nothing  can 
describe.  I  was  calm,  cool,  illuminated,  as  if  crystal  circulated  through  my 
veins.     I  returned  home,  and  spent  the  day  in  mute  seclusion." 

Very  shortly  after  his  arrival  in  the  metropolis  he  entered  the  schools  of 
the  Roj'al  Academy — this  was  in  1804.  Fuseli,  to  whom  he  had  received 
an  introduction,  took  great  interest  in  him.  In  1807  he  exhibited  his  first 
picture,  "  The  Repose  in  Egypt,"  which  was  purchased  by  Mr.  Hope,  known 
as  Anasiaiiiis  Hope.  In  1809  he  exhibited  his  "  Dentatus :  "  through  the 
intervention  of  Fuseli  it  was  well  placed  in  the  rooms  of  the  Royal  Academy, 
but  in  consequence  of  the  "  hanging  committee"  removing  it  from  the  great 
room,  where  it  had  been  first  hung,  to  another,  although  the  picture  was 
equally  well  seen,  Haydon  bitterly  complained  of  the  injustice  done  to  him. 
This  was  the  event  that  cast  its  shadow  over  all  his  after-life,  and  involved 
him  in  an  endless  contest  with  the  Academy,  whom  he  openly  accused  of 
fearing  his  success  as  the  founder  of  a  new  school  of  Historical  Art.  The 
"Dentatus,"  which  was  exhibited  the  following  winter  at  the  British  Institu- 
tion, where  it  gained  the  first  prize  of  100  guineas,  is  a  bold  and  vigorous 
composition,  which  would  be  honourable  to  any  artist,  whatever  his 
standing ;  Haydon,  when  he  painted  it,  had  not  reached  his  twenty-third 
year. 

From  the  outset  of  his  career  Haydon  had  his  own  ideas  of  the  grand 
style  of  Historical  Art,  and  he  persevered  in  maintaining  them,  whatever  his 
patrons  thought  or  desired  to  the  contrary :  is  it  a  wonder,  therefore,  that 
he  was  comparatively  neglected,  or  at  least  that  he  failed  to  satisfy  many 
who  would  have  befriended  him  ?  Sir  George  Beaumont,  for  example,  gave 
him  a  commission  to  paint  a  subject  from  Macbeth  of  a  certain  size,  as 
he  required  it  to  occupy  a  particular  place  in  a  room ;  Haydon  produced  a 
picture  three  times  as  large  as  the  limits  assigned  him,  and  then  was  angry 
with  his  patron  for  expressing  dissatisfaction  with  what  he  had  done. 

The  painting  of  this  picture,  his  quarrels  with  the  Academy,  and  his 
literary  disputations  appear  to  have  occupied  Haydon  till  the  spring  of  181 2, 
when  he  commenced  his  "Judgment  of  Solomon:"  it  was  finished  in  the 
spring  of  18 14,  and   exhibited   in   the  gallery  of  the  Water-Colour  Societ)% 


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then  in  Spring  Gardens.  "The  success  of  'Solomon,'"  he  says  in  his 
diary,  "was  so  great,  and  my  triumph  so  complete,  that  had  I  died  then 
my  name  must  have  stood  on  record  as  a  youth  who  had  made  a  stand 
against  the  prejudices  of  a  country,  the  oppressions  of  rank,  and  the  cruelty 
and  injustice  of  two  public  bodies."  It  was  purchased  by  two  Devonshire 
gentlemen,  Sir  W.  Elford  and  Mr.  Tingecombe,  for  600  guineas,  though 
what  became  of  it  for  many  years,  till  it  came  into  the  hands  of  the  late 
Sir  E.  Landseer,  we  know  not;  but  when,  in  1827,  a  public  subscription 
was  made  to  relieve  the  painter  from  his  pecuniary  difficulties,  he  gave 
the  following  account  of  the  disposition  of  his  great  pictures: — "  My  'Judg- 
ment of  Solomon  '  is  rolled  up  in  a  warehouse  in  the  Borough ;  my 
'  Entry  into  Jerusalem,'  once  graced  by  the  enthusiasm  of  the  rank  and 
beauty  of  the  three  kingdoms,  is  doubled  up  in  a  back  room  in  Holborn ; 
my  '  Lazarus '  is  in  an  upholsterer's  shop  in  Mount  Street ;  and  my  '  Cruci- 
fixion' in  a  hayloft  at  Lisson  Grove."  This,  it  must  be  acknowledged,  is 
a  melancholy  statement  for  a  painter  of  genius  to  be  compelled  to  make, 
and  is  anything  but  creditable  to  the  country  that  allowed  such  neglect. 

Haydon,  in  his  earlier  time,  had  numerous  pupils,  several  of  whom  have 
risen  to  eminence,  though  in  a  far  different  style  from  his  own  :  among  them 
were  Sir  C.  L.  Eastlake,  the  Landseers,  Lance,  Prentice,  and  Harvey. 

In  the  month  of  May,  18 14,  Haydon,  accompanied  by  Wilkie,  set  out 
for  Paris,  at  that  time  occupied  by  the  allied  armies  of  England,  Russia,  &c. 
Previous  to  starting,  however,  Haydon  sketched  in  his  "  Christ's  Entry  into 
Jerusalem  ;  "  it  was  not  completed  till  1820,  and  was  then  exhibited  at  the 
Egyptian  Hall,  Piccadilly,  where  it  attracted  such  attention  as  to  realise  to 
the  artist  the  sum  of  ^  i  ,300.  He  then  took  it  to  Edinburgh  and  Glasgow  :  the 
proceeds  of  the  exhibition  at  these  two  places  amounted  to  about  ,^900  more, 
exclusive  of  his  expenses,  so  that  it  may  fairly  be  stated  the  artist  received 
little  less  than  ^2,000  for  the  exhibition  of  this  single  picture — by  no  means 
a  small  sum  even  for  its  purchase,  though,  if  it  be  considered  that  it  took 
him  nearly  six  years  to  complete,  the  annual  income  derived  from  it  would 
be  most  inadequate  for  a  painter  of  Haydon' s  talents  and  requirements. 

His  next  work  was  the  "Agony  in  the  Garden,"  painted  for  Sir  George 
Phillips,  a  liberal  patron  of  Haydon,  who  had  advanced  him  the  price  of 
it — 500  guineas — to  complete  the  "Solomon."  "I  exhibited  it,"  writes 
the  artist,  "  with  my  other  works.      I  took   a  great  deal  of  money  at  this 


20  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

exhibition,  but  not  enough ;  and  it  was  wrong  so  to  strain  public  enthu- 
siasm. This  particular  picture  was  severely  handled.  Sir  George  was 
disappointed  (though  he  was  as  much  to  blame  as  myself) ;  and  when  the 
picture  was  sent  home,  he  so  objected  to  a  sacred  subject  in  a  drawing- 
room,  that  he  put  it  out  of  view  altogether.  It  was  wrong  in  me  to  paint 
it  so  large;  it  was  wrong  to  choose  such  a  subject  to  be  hung  where 
quadrilles  were  danced.     It  was  wrong  in  every  way." 

But  though  Haydon  could  see  his  errors,  he  took  no  pains  to  amend 
them  :  obstinate  and  self-willed,  he  disregarded  public  opinion,  vexed  his 
patrons,  and  then  foolishly  complained  of  the  injustice  he  had  received. 
"I  have  been  eight  years,"  he  says,  "without  a  commission  from  the 
nobility ;  and  of  the  thirty-nine  years  I  have  been  an  historical  painter, 
thirty-two  without  an  order  of  any  kind."  And  yet,  notwithstanding  his 
disappointments,  he  continued  to  paint  pictures  which,  from  their  vast  dimen- 
sions, no  private  individuals  could  hang  up ;  and  we  have  not  yet  learned 
to  decorate  our  churches  with  such  works  of  Art.  In  1820  he  began  his 
"  Lazarus."  We  get  an  insight  into  the  disposition  of  the  painter  from  what 
he  has  left  upon  record,  and  therefore  offer  no  apologies  for  our  extracts. 
•'  I  always  filled  my  painting-room  to  its  full  extent;  and  had  I  possessed  a 
room  400  feet  long,  200  feet  high,  and  400  feet  wide,  I  would  have  ordered  a 
canvas  199-6  long  by  199-6  high,  &c.  My  room  was  thirty  feet  long,  twenty 
wide,  fifteen  high.  So  I  ordered  a  canvas  nineteen  long  by  fifteen  high,  and 
dashed  in  my  conception,  the  Christ  being  nine  feet  high.  This  was  a  subject 
and  a  size  which  I  loved  to  my  very  marrow."  Can  such  an  act  be  called 
by  any  other  name  than  a  mental  delusion  ? 

But  we  have  no  space  for  comment,  and  can  only  briefly  refer  to  the 
other  pictures  of  this  highly  gifted,  but  infatuated  painter.  In  1827  he  was 
incarcerated  in  the  King's  Bench  Prison  for  debt.  Here  he  painted  the 
"Mock  Election"  held  there,  for  which  George  IV.  paid  him  500  guineas; 
and  "Chairing  the  Member,"  bought  by  Mr.  Francis,  of  Exeter,  for  300 
guineas.  Another  work,  painted  about  the  same  period,  "Pharaoh  dis- 
missing Moses,"  was  purchased  by  a  Mr.  Hunter  for  500  guineas.  His 
subsequent  works  were — the  "  Reform  Banquet ;  "  the  meeting  of  the  "Anti- 
Slavery  Society;"  the  "Banishment  of  Aristides ;  "  "Nero  playing  on  the 
Lyre  while  Rome  is  burning;"  "Curtius;"  and  "Alexander  the  Great 
encountering  a  Lion."     At  the  time  of  his  death  he  was  employed  on  another 


QUINTUS    CURTIUS. 
From  a  Pai'iting  l>y  Benjamin  Robert  Hivdon. 


M  U  L  R  E  A  D  Y.  2, 

larg-e  work — "Alfred  the  Great  and  the  First  English  Jury;  "  but  mind  and 
body  were  worn  out — he  succumbed  before  disappointed  hopes  and  enfeebled 
physical  powers. 

With  him  the  indifference   of  the   public  and    the   opposition    of  other 
artists,  from  a  grievance,  became  a  monomania. 

In  his  "Lectures  on  Art" — a  work  full  of  sound  and  valuable  instruction 
— he  says,  "From  the  oppression  of  the  authorities  in  Art,  tvi/hoid  any  cause  (?), 
and  my  subsequent  resistance  and  opposition  to  them,  I  had  brought  on 
myself  the  enmity  of  all  those  who  hoped  to  advance  in  life  by  their  patronage ; 
loss  of  employment  from  their  continual  calumny  brought  loss  of  income  ;  the 
rich  advanced  loans  to  finish  great  works  they  were  persuaded  not  to  purchase," 
and  so  on.  This,  there  is  little  question,  was  but  too  true ;  we  stop  not  to 
inquire  how  much  his  own  conduct  contributed  to  such  a  result ;  but  it  may 
safely  be  averred  that  in  few  countries  besides  our  own  would  a  painter  of  his 
genius,  of  whatever  mental  temperament,  have  met  with  treatment  similar  to 
that  experienced  by  Haydon  during  a  large  portion  of  his  career.  Can  that 
be  called  a  groundless  charge  of  neglect  which  he  brought  against  the  public, 
when  12,000  people  flocked  to  see  General  Tom  Thumb  in  one  week,  and 
only  133  visited  the  pictures  of  "  Aristides  "  and  the  "Burning  of  Rome," 
exhibited  under  the  same  roof  at  the  same  time  ?  Was  there  not  enough  in 
this  to  excite  the  anger  of  a  far  less  sensitive  and  excitable  mind  than 
Haydon's  ?  and  was  it  not  sufficient  to  urge  him  to  the  commission  of  the 
awful  deed  which  deprived  his  country  a  month  or  two  afterwards  of  a  great 
and  original  painter  ?  Peace  to  his  memory !  His  excellence,  no  less  than 
his  failings,  will  hereafter  receive  its  due  reward. 


William  Mulready  began  life  as  an  Art  student;  all  through  his  career 
— that  is,  for  a  period  extending  over  sixty  years — he  confessed  himself  still 
a  learner ;  and  when  death  called  him  somewhat  suddenly  from  his  easel, 
he  felt  that  he  had  not  even  then  done  all  which  Art  was  capable  of  achieving, 
though  every  one  else  was  convinced  that  he  had  long  since  accomplished 
the  end.  This  was  the  great  secret  of  his  unvarjqng  success — his  motto  was 
"progression;"  and  year  after  year,  even  to  the  closing  act  of  his 
professional  life,  one  could  always  detect  in  his  works  some  faculty 
undeveloped  before,  some  new  point  of  excellence,  some  evidence  of  more 


22  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

matured  powers  of  thought  or  of  execution.  And  no  wonder,  since  he  caused 
his  pictures  to  grow  slowly  under  his  hand,  allowing  sometimes  years  to 
elapse  from  the  time  when  he  sketched  his  first  ideas  on  the  canvas  till  they 
appeared  in  a  complete  form  on  the  wall  of  the  exhibition-room  ;  he  could 
much  more  easily  please  the  public,  and  even  the  critics,  than  he  could 
satisfy  himself. 

The  life  of  Mulready  is  coeval  with  three  generations.  He  came  to 
England  from  Ireland  about  the  year  1790,  and  was  introduced  to  Banks  the 
sculptor,  who  took  him  into  his  studio,  and  set  him  to  work  at  drawings  from 
his  casts.  At  the  age  of  fourteen  he  was  admitted  a  student  in  the  Royal 
Academy,  and  shortly  afterwards  gained  the  silver  palette  in  the  Society 
of  Arts'  competition.  During  some  years  he  earned  his  living  as  a  teacher 
of  drawing,  and  by  making  designs  for  illustrated  books  published  by 
William  Godwin.  His  earliest  paintings  were  attempts  at  the  grand  style — 
"Ulysses  and  Polyphemus,"  a  theme  which  his  contemporary,  Turner,  sub- 
sequently rendered  with  such  poetical  imagination  ;  and  "  The  Disobedient 
Prophet,"  the  subject  of  one  of  Linnell's  greatest  works.  These  pictures 
failing  in  success,  Mulready  turned  his  attention  to  landscape  and  cottage 
scenes  with  figures,  his  first  work  exhibited  at  the  Academy  being  "  A  Cot- 
tage at  Knaresborough  "  in  1804.  From  the  year  just  mentioned  till  about 
1 813  his  pictures  were  of  a  miscellaneous  kind,  landscapes,  interiors,  and 
"still  life"  alternating  with  each  other. 

It  is  not,  however,  to  be  supposed  that  by  this  desultory  kind  of  work 
Mulready  was  experimentalising  on  the  taste  of  the  public,  or  that  he  was 
uncertain  in  his  own  mind  in  what  direction  his  genius  would  ultimately 
lead  him  ;  he  was  quietly  biding  his  time,  and  studying  the  works  of  the 
old  Dutch  masters,  Jan  Steen  and  Teniers.  Occasionally  during  his  earlier 
practice  he  had  produced  a  few  figure  subjects — "The  Rattle  "  in  1808,  and 
"Returning  from  the  Alehouse"  in  i8og.  But  in  1813  he  sent  to  the 
Academy  "Boys  playing  at  Cricket,"  painted  three  years  previously,  and 
the  first  of  that  series  of  characteristic  pictures  which  have  ever  since  been 
associated  with  his  name.  It  is  grey-headed  men  only  who  can  recollect  the 
first  appearance  of  "Punch"  in  18 13,  of  "Idle  Boys"  in  181 5,  of  "The 
Fight  Interrupted  "  in  1816,  and  of  "  Lending  a  Bite  "  in  18 19. 

Following  these  came  at  intervals  "  The  Wolf  and  the  Lamb,"  "  The 
Careless    Messenger,"     "The   Travelling    Druggist,"    "The   Origin    of    a 


CHOOSING   THE   WEDDING   GOWN. 

From  a  Painting  hy    William  Mulreaily,   R.A. 


M  U L  R  E  A  D  V.  23 

Painter,"  "Boys  firing-  a  Cannon,"  "Returning  from  the  Hustings,"  "A 
Sailing-  Match" — a  duplicate  of  this  picture  -was  painted  for  Mr.  Sheepshanks 
— "The  Forg-otten  Word,"  "  The  First  Voyage" — sold  for  1,450  guineas — 
"Giving  a  Bite,"  "The  Last  In,"  "Bob  Cherry,"  "Fair  Time,"  "The 
Ford." — all  these  in  the  Vernon  collection — "Choosing  the  Wedding  Gown," 
"  Burchell  and  Sophia,"  "  The  Butt,"  with  several  others  of  subjects  differing 
somewhat  from  these. 

Omitting  all  allusion  to  the  subject  matter  of  these  pictures,  there  is 
nothing  in  the  whole  range  of  Dutch  or  Flemish  Art  that  can  be  brought  into 
comparison  with  most  of  them  for  truth  of  drawing,  elaborate  finish,  and 
splendour  of  colouring.  It  has  been  well  said  that,  "  as  a  painter,  Mulready's 
art  is  perfection:"  by  intense  study,  and  by  the  display  of  consummate 
technical  powers,  he  triumphed  over  all  the  greatest  difficulties  of  his  art. 
And  if  we  look  beyond  the  mere  externals,  so  to  speak,  of  his  paintings,  into 
the  materials  of  which  the  several  subjects  are  composed,  what  evidence  we 
find  of  his  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  heart  and  mind,  how  much  of 
humour,  and  not  un frequently  of  pathos  too !  His  earlier  works  do  not  reach 
that  richness  and  beauty  of  colour  seen  in  his  later,  but  even  in  those  he 
attained  a  far  higher  degree  of  brilliancy  than  Wilkie  ever  did.  Note,  too,  the 
refined  character  of  his  faces,  the  simple  unaffected  sweetness  of  his  village 
girls,  the  ivholesome,  fresh,  and  unvulgarised  countenances  of  his  village 
urchins  ;  there  is  no  sentimental  prettiness  in  the  former,  nothing  mean  and  low 
in  the  latter ;  stolid  and  clownish  some  of  these  may  be,  and  are  required  to 
be,  to  support  the  characters  assigned  to  them,  but  they  are  not  debased  in 
expression,  not  caricatured  to  give  point  to  the  idea  they  are  intended  to  con- 
vey ;  it  is  here  we  discover  Mulready's  gentle  dealing  with  the  infirmities  of 
human  nature,  and  the  reflection  of  his  own  cheerful  spirit  and  rightly  directed 
mind.  He  was  a  lover  of  his  species,  and  would  not  hold  even  the  young- 
sters up  to  ridicule,  though  he  set  forth  their  humours,  both  good  and 
evil. 

In  the  work  of  producing  he  commenced  and  continued  throughout  on  the 
surest  and  only  sound  principles  ;  he  studied  everything  well  beforehand,  and 
made  very  careful  drawings  of  all — even  to  the  most  insignificant  object  to  be 
introduced  into  the  picture.  Thus  the  entire  composition  was  not  only 
preconceived,  but  he  surrounded  himself  with  all  the  materials  he  intended  to 
employ  in  it.     And  yet  with  this  attention  to  minutiae  and  to  extreme  finish — 


24  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

for  even  the  studies  were  completed  drawings — there  is  no  evidence  in  any  of 
Mulready's  works  of  pre-Raffaellite  elaboration. 

The  two  pictures  of  which  we  here  give  engravings  represent  two  different 
classes  of  figure  subjects. 

"Lending  a  Bite,"  exhibited  in  1836,  belongs  to  the  humorous  class, 
which  forms  the  majority  of  Mulready's  best-known  works.  A  marvellous 
faculty  he  had  for  developing  character  in  rustic  juveniles,  and  bringing  it 
out  in  all  its  varied  truthful  aspects.  Look  at  the  boy  who  is  owner  of  the 
apple ;  he  is  evidently  not  large-hearted ;  awed  by  the  threats  of  the  bigger 
and  stronger  boy,  he  allows  him  to  take  a  "  bite,"  yet  how  tenaciously  he 
holds  the  apple  in  his  two  hands,  his  thumbs  just  indicating  the  portion  to  be 
absorbed,  certainly  not  as  a  free-will  offering ;  his  elbows  are  placed  close  to 
his  side,  the  better  to  resist  any  attempt  to  get  beyond  the  limits  of  his 
assigned  generosity;  he  shrinks  from  the  attack  of  the  devourer  on  his 
property ;  and  his  countenance  is  marked  by  misgivings  and  apprehension. 
The  boy  who  has  extorted  the  unwilling  favour  is  a  hungry-looking  fellow, 
his  mouth  is  opened  widely,  and  we  may  be  sure  he  will  make  the  most  of  the 
opportunity.  The  young  girl  with  the  sleepy  child  looks  on  to  see  the  result 
of  the  operation,  and  will  doubtless  have  something  to  joke  the  donor  about 
when  it  is  ended.  A  kind  of  repetition  of  the  incident,  reversed,  appears  in 
the  Savoyard's  monkey  and  the  rustic's  dog;  the  latter  looks  at  the  ape  as  if 
he  contemplated  giving  it  a  bite,  and  the  little  animal  shrinks  back  in  terror 
between  the  knees  of  his  master,  who,  like  the  girl,  takes  no  small  interest  in 
the  fate  of  the  apple. 

As  an  example  of  Mulready's  strictly  domestic  pictures,  "Choosing  the 
Wedding  Gown,"  exhibited  in  1846,  is  admirable;  as  a  specimen  of 
brilliant  colouring  it  is  superlatively  excellent ;  nothing  in  modern  Art — it 
may  be  said  in  the  Art  of  any  age,  in  this  class  of  subject — has  surpassed  or 
even  equalled  it.  This  splendour  is  not  reached  by  the  free  use  of  positive 
colour,  but  by  the  most  subtle  and  delicate  application  of  tints,  both  in  the 
lights  and  shades,  worked  up  from  the  lowest  to  the  highest  scale,  culminating 
in  pure  red,  ultramarine,  &c.,  and  all  presenting  the  most  perfect  harmony, 
because  founded  and  carried  through  on  well-understood  and  immutable  laws. 
Then  look  at  the  composition ;  mark  the  arrangement  of  the  two  principal 
figures ;  how  easily  and  naturally  they  are  placed,  and  how  carefully  both 
attitude  and  action  have  been  studied  to  preserve  a  right  balance  as  well  as  to 


LENDINi;    A    BITK. 
From  a  Painting  by  M'lllkim  Miilnudy,  K.A. 


E  T  T  r.  25 

support  the  subject.  The  extended  hand  of  the  silk-mercer,  for  example, 
was  a  necessity  to  fill  up  a  space  which  would  otherwise  have  been  vacant ;  it 
serves  as  a  counterpoise  to  the  uplifted  hands  of  the  lady,  and  it  marks  the 
impressiveness  with  which  the  shopkeeper  commends  his  goods.  And,  lastly, 
notice  the  beauty  of  the  fair  purchaser's  face — the  future  Mrs.  Primrose — and 
with  what  earnestness  she  examines  the  piece  of  rich  stuff;  the  kindly 
solicitude  of  her  affianced  husband,  the  worthy  doctor  ;  and  the  persuasiveness 
of  the  bland  and  smiling-  mercer.  In  the  background  is  his  wife  attending  to 
a  customer :  the  artist  has  bestowed  no  less  pains  on  the  good  dame  than  on 
the  other  and  more  prominent  persons  in  the  composition.  In  fact,  whether 
we  look  for  colour,  form,  expression,  or  design,  we  see  each  and  all  exhibited 
in  the  most  attractive,  powerful,  and  recondite  manner. 

For  the  information  of  our  readers  we  may  add  that  in  the  Vernon  and 
Sheepshanks  collections  will  be  found  a  sufficient  number  of  the  works  of  this 
artist  on  which  to  form  a  correct  judgment  of  his  style  and  execution,  and  in 
Palgrave's  "  Essays  on  Art"  is  a  concise  statement  of  his  claims  to  rank  high 
in  his  profession.  An  edition  of  the  "Vicar  of  Wakefield"  was  published  in 
1840,  with  engravings  of  about  twenty  of  Mulready's  drawings.  The  "Toy 
Seller,"  and  some  other  works  left  unfinished  at  his  death,  cannot  fairly  be 
pronounced  equal  to  his  previous  pieces. 

In  Mulready's  life  and  works  are  materials  to  fill  a  volume ;  whenever  and 
by  whomsoever  such  may  be  written,  it  will  be  no  easy  task  to  do  full  justice 
to  the  genius  and  skill  which  characterized  the  practice  of  his  art. 


In  the  Art  Journal  for  1 849  will  be  found  an  autobiography  of  William 
Etty,  in  the  form  of  letters  addressed  to  a  relation.  Although  his  straight- 
forward description  of  his  own  upward  struggles  and  disappointments  has 
much  interest  for  the  general  reader,  it  is  impossible  to  help  feeling  that 
it  is  artists  for  whom  he  is  writing,  and  that  many  of  his  words  are  called 
forth  by  a  strong  sympathy  with  the  younger  and  less  fortunate  members 
of  his  own  profession.  To  those  whom  genius  has  called  to  give  up  far 
more  profitable  occupations  for  the  brush  and  easel,  while  it  also  elicits 
the  want  of  appreciation,  or  even  the  persecution  which  is  so  often  its 
concomitant,  every  word  in  these  letters  speaks  sympathy,  encouragement, 
and  hope. 


26  BRITISH     PAINTERS. 

Etty  was  born  at  York  in  1787.  At  the  age  of  eleven  and  a  half  years  he 
was  apprenticed  as  a  compositor  to  a  letterpress  printer  at  Hull.  Him  he 
served  "  seven  full  years  faithfully  and  truly,  and  worked  at  the  business  three 
weeks  as  a  journeyman  :  but  I  had  such  a  busy  desire  to  be  a  painter,  that  the 
last  years  of  my  servitude  dragged  on  most  heavily.  I  counted  the  years,  days, 
weeks,  and  hours,  till  liberty  should  break  my  chains,  and  set  my  struggling 

spirit  free Seven  long  years  I  patiently  bided  my  time,  but  the  iron 

tvcnt  into  my  soul ;  and  I  now  even  sometimes  dream  I  am  a  captive,  but  wake 
and  find  it  luckily  but  a  dream."  *  In  1805  he  came  up  to  London,  entered 
the  schools  of  the  Royal  Academy,  and  applied  himself  diligently  to  the  task 
of  becoming  a  painter.  Eleven  years  were  passed  in  this  effort,  but  he  failed 
— at  least,  in  the  eyes  of  the  critics  and  Art  patrons — of  accomplishing  his 
purpose,  exhibiting  annually,  from  181 1,  at  the  British  Institution  and  the 
Academy,  yet  unsuccessful  in  attracting  much  favourable  notice.  Still,  as  his 
biographer,  Mr.  Gilchrist,  remarks,  he  was  all  the  while  "  laying  the  founda- 
tion of  that  extensive  knowledge  of  the  human  figure,  male  and  female,  which 

the  practice  of  so  many  years  of  pains  and  studies  must  give In  early 

life,  he  has  been  outdone  by  scores  of  clever  young  artists, — just  as  the  early 
poems  of  Wordsworth  (those  previous  in  date  to  the  'Lyrical  Ballads')  are 
thrown  into  the  shade  by  the  first-fruits  of  poets  not  ultimately  exerting  a  tithe 
of  his  influence  on  the  hearts  of  men.  There  were  several  causes  to  account 
for  the  extreme  slowness  of  Etty's  progress — slowness  partly  constitutional, 
partly  inevitable  (in  our  time)  to  his  range  of  Art ;  in  part  attributable  to  the 
late  commencement  of  his  elementary  training, — in  part,  perhaps,  to  the  false 
bias  it  necessarily  took  under  Lawrence.  The  lesson  was  begun  at  the  wrong 
end  :  felicities  of  touch  were  caught  before  drawing  and  even  colour  had  been 
mastered.     He  had  to  turn  back  in  search  of  these." 

Eleven  years  thus  passed  away,  resulting  in  little  else,  as  he  acknow- 
ledges, than  the  conviction  that  so  much  valuable  time  had  been,  by 
comparison  with  what  it  might  have  been,  unprofitably  spent :  he  was  looked 
upon  by  his  companions  as  a  worthy,  plodding  person,  with  no  chance  of  ever 
becoming  a  good  painter.  "It  is  a  mortifying  proof,"  he  notes  down  in  his 
diary  of  the  early  part  of  1816,  "  '  how  vast  is  Art,  how  narrow  human  wit ' — 
to  reflect  how  long  I  have  painted,  and  that  I  should  have  neglected  this  very 
essential  part  of  good  colouring  so  long.     But  now,  having  my  eyes  open,  I 

*  Autobiography,  Art  Journal,  p.  13.     1841). 


E  T  T  V.  r-j 

trust  I  shall  ever  be  alive  to  its  importance  ;  not  s^o  on  painting-  over  and 
over  again,  every  time  getting  deeper  and  deeper  in  error,  but  endeavour 
to  make  every  part  of  my  work  tell ;  nor  do  over  to-night  what  I  did  last 
night." 

In  the  autumn  of  1816  Etty  took  a  hasty  journey  into  Italy,  visiting 
Bologna,  Milan,  and  Florence :  his  thoughts,  however,  were  too  much 
occupied  with  an  "affair  of  the  heart"  to  afford  him  the  opportunity  of 
profiting  by  even  a  hurried  inspection  of  the  Italian  galleries  of  Art.  "  I  feel 
so  lonely,"  he  writes  to  his  brother  Walter,  "  it  is   impossible  for  mc  to  be 

happy ;  and  if  not  happy,  I  cannot  apply  vigorously  to  my  studies I 

think  there  are  sufficient  fine  pictures  in  England  to  study  from." 

Three  more  years  rolled  away,  leaving  Etty  still  among  the  "  unknown  ;  " 
but  a  little  picture  entitled  "Pandora,"  exhibited  at  the  British  Institution  in 
the  spring  of  1820,  drew  attention  to  the  artist;  and  another,  the  "Coral 
Finders,"  exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  the  same  year,  brought  him  more 
prominently  into  notice :  the  latter  was  purchased  by  the  late  Mr.  Tomp- 
kinson,  pianoforte  manufacturer,  at  the  artist's  modest  price  of  ^30  ;  in  1849, 
at  the  sale  of  the  collection,  by  Christie  and  Manson,  of  the  late  Mr. 
Nicholson,  of  York,  one  of  Etty's  early  patrons,  it  brought  370  guineas. 
Among  other  collectors  whom  the  "Coral  Finders"  had  attracted  was  the 
late  Sir  Francis  Freeling,  who  at  once  commissioned  Etty,  on  finding  that 
this  picture  was  sold,  to  paint  him  another  similar  in  subject :  the  artist 
selected  that  of  "Cleopatra  arriving  in  Cilicia."  It  was  exhibited  at  the 
Academy  in  1821,  and  left  the  impression  on  the  mind  of  the  public  that  a 
great  artist  was  rising  up  among  them.  "The  price  received  by  the 
painter,"  says  Mr.  Gilchrist,  "  for  his  second  master-piece,  has  been  stated  to 
have  been  200  guineas  ;  it  was,  I  believe,  a  much  smaller  sum."  A  few  years 
ago  Mr.  Labouchere  paid  1,000  guineas  for  it. 

In  1822  another  journey  to  Italy  was  undertaken.  He  was  absent  two 
years,  studying  and  copying  many  of  the  finest  pictures  of  the  great  masters 
in  the  galleries  of  Naples,  Rome,  Florence,  and  especially  of  Venice,  amid 
difficulties  and  discomforts  sufficient  to  curb  the  enthusiasm  of  anj-  but  the 
most  earnest  and  persevering  artist.  His  rapidity  of  execution,  and  his 
masterly  translation,  of  the  chcfs-d'' ccuvre  of  Italy  called  forth  the  wonder  and 
admiration  of  the  modern  artists  of  that  countr}'.  "He  paints,"  one 
exclaimed,  "with  the  fury  of  a  devil,  and  the  sweetness  of  an  angel."     The 


z8  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Academy  of  Florence  elected  Honorary  Academician  the  "  English  Tintoret," 
a  surname  the  Florentines  gave  him. 

One  cannot  but  deeply  regret  that  so  poetic  a  mind  as  Etty's  did  not  lead 
him  to  leave  some  lasting  and  instructive  record  of  his  foreign  travels — some 
relation  of  the  impressions  it  received  from  what  he  saw  both  in  nature  and 
in  Art — some  fruits  of  his  experience  in  the  study  of  the  great  painters  of 
Italy :  he  might  have  given  to  the  world  many  valuable  remarks  on  them  and 
their  works — such  information  as  only  one  who  is  a  true  artist,  and  imbued 
with  kindred  feelings,  could  give.  Unhappily  for  all  but  himself,  he  was 
unwilling  to  devote  to  the  pen  any  portion  of  the  time  he  had  dedicated  to  the 
pencil :  his  object  was  to  paint,  not  to  write.  How  he  would  have  accom- 
pHshed  the  latter,  if  so  inclined,  is  proved  from  the  few  fragments  of  his 
correspondence,  and  from  the  entries  in  his  diary,  which  we  find  in  the 
volumes  of  his  biographer.  He  was  at  this  time  under  great  depression  of 
spirits,  arising  from  uncertainty  as  to  the  result  of  a  love  suit.  He  had,  prior 
to  his  departure  from  England,  formed  a  second  attachment,  which,  like  the 
first  and  others  that  followed — for  Etty  was  frequently  "  in  love,"  a  weakness 
he  often  acknowledged — turned  out  unsuccessfully :  he  lived  and  died  a 
bachelor. 

Here  and  there  only  do  we  gather  from  his  letters  any  comments  on  the 
Italian  galleries.  Writing  from  Florence  to  Sir  Thomas  Lawrence,  he  says, 
"  You,  I  am  sure,  must  have  been  much  struck  with  the  Tintorets  here,  in  the 
Academy,  Ducal  Palace,  &c. ;  his  '  Last  Judgment,'  '  Crucifixion,'  small 
'  St.  Agnes' — a  sweet  and  carefully  painted  picture.  What  a  glorious  group 
that  is  we  see  at  the  foot  of  the  cross  !  Really,  for  composition,  for  pathos, 
appropriate  and  harmonious  combination  of  hues,  and  great  executive  power, 
I  have  never  seen  it  excelled,  rarely  equalled.  The  poetry  of  his  '  Last 
Judgment,'  the  hues,  the  teeming  richness  of  composition, — figures  whirled 
in  all  possibilities  of  action  and  foreshortening, — excite  astonishment  at  his 
powers  that  does  not  easily  subside."  Again  addressing  Sir  Thomas  from 
Mantua,  he  speaks  with  equal  raptures  of  the  works  there  by  Giullo  Romano. 
For  this  and  other  like  expressions  of  opinion  see  Gilchrist's  biography  of  the 
artist. 

Such  fragments  of  writing,  disjointed  and  rhapsodical  as  they  are,  will 
serve  to  show  the  "  inner  mind  "  of  the  painter,  and  the  character  given  to  it 
by  his  observant  faculties.     His  descriptive  powers  were  evidently  of  no  mean 


E  T  T  y.  29 

order,  and,  with  some  training  in  the  school  of  literature,  they  might  have 
been  turned  to  an  account  profitable  to  himself  and  others.  We  will  now 
return  with  him  to  England,  and  glance  at  one  or  two  of  the  many  pictures 
that  resulted  from  his  foreign  travel — those  especially  we  have  selected  for 
engraving. 

Who  that  saw  the  magnificent  collection  of  Etty's  works  which  the  Society 
of  Arts  gathered  within  its  rooms  at  the  Adelphi  in  the  summer  of  1849,  '^ 
few  months  only  before  his  death,  did  not  feel  almost  dazzled  and  bewildered 
by  the  gorgeous  display  presented  to  the  eye  ?  Certainly  never  in  the  Art 
history  of  this  country  was  there  a  more  brilliant  exhibition,  from  the  mind 
and  hand  of  a  single  painter,  offered  to  our  homage  and  admiration  ;  and  it  is 
very  doubtful  whether  the  like  was  ever  seen  elsewhere,  in  any  period  of  time. 
Among  them  there  was  not  one  which  attracted  more  notice  than  "  The 
Combat:  Woman  pleading  for  the  Vanquished,"  exhibited  at  the  Academy 
in  1825,  the  year  after  his  return  from  the  continent.  What  a  noble  compo- 
sition is  this  !  How  finely  does  it  illustrate  what  the  painter  aimed  at — the 
"beauty  of  Mercy!"  There,  too,  the  kindred  subject — "  Benaiah,  David's 
chief  Captain;" — "both,"  to  borrow  a  passage  from  an  excellent  article  in 
the  Eclectic  Rcviciv  for  September,  1849,  upon  the  exhibition  at  the  Society  of 
Arts — "both  equally  great  in  their  several  kinds:  for  power,  for  what  may 
be  called  the  expression,  the  eloquence  of  Action,  and  for  general  distinctive 
character ;  for  grandeur  of  manner  and  drawing,  and  for  nobility  of  colour. 
The  right  character  of  force — quite  unexaggerated — in  the  combatants,  in 
both  pictures,  and  the  form,  and  the  appropriateness  of  form  and  sentiment, 
of  the  woman  in  the  '  Mercy,'  with  its  tender  beauty  and  serious  grace,  are  of 
pre-eminent  truth  and  effectiveness.  The  '  Joan  of  Arc  '  somewhat  declines 
before  such  triumphs  as  these ;  in  some  degree  representing  the  general 
variance  of  attainment  from  his  earlier  time,  accompanying  the  painter's 
latter  years  of  practice." 

That  Etty  was  a  true  poet  none,  we  believe,  who  understand  and 
appreciate  the  poetry  of  Art  will  be  disposed  to  deny ;  not,  indeed,  one  of 
those  whose  mind  loves  to  trace  out  and  describe,  with  delicacy  of  perception, 
what  is  minute,  secret,  and  of  comparatively  minor  significance,  but  as  "  a 
conceiver  of  beautiful  and  subtile  thoughts,  sometimes  severe  and  religious — 
in  the  large  sense  of  the  word — sometimes  dreamy,  luxurious,  vague ;  as  a 
realiser  of  deep  true  feeling ;    as  an  interpreter  of  somewhat  of  the  glory  of 


30  B  R  I  T I  S  H    P  A  I N  T  E  R  S. 

God's  nature;  as  an  achiever  of  the  highest  purely  artistic  greatness, — of 
design,  manner,  and,  above  all,  of  colour,  he  must  take  a  rare  and  elevated 
rank  among  painters  of  all  time."  As  an  example — one  of  the  finest,  too — • 
of  his  poetically  constituted  mind,  we  would  point  out  his  "Youth  and 
Pleasure,"  in  the  Vernon  collection,  an  allegorical  conception  in  which  every 
figure  expresses  an  idea  pregnant  with  meaning.  On  a  much  smaller  scale, 
yet  exhibiting  equally  with  the  other  poetic  feeling  and  significance,  elevating 
the  picture  into  a  class  of  works  of  original  thought  and  purpose,  we  would 
instance  the  "Cupid  in  a  Shell,"  a  subject  which  the  artist  painted  more  than 
once,  but  in  each  case  differently  treated.  Our  engraving  is  taken  from  a 
little  gem  painted  by  Etty,  in  1846,  for  Mr.  Alderman  Spiers,  of  Oxford. 

Whatever  opinion  may  now  be  formed  by  Etty's  countrymen  of  his  genius 
— and  we  are  far  from  thinking  that  nationally  we  estimate  it  as  we  ought — 
a  time  will  most  assuredly  come  when  his  name  and  his  works  will  take  rank 
with  those  of  the  great  men  who  were  before  him  only  by  the  accident  of 
birth.  It  has  been  truly  said  that  "his  style  is  one  of  exquisite  subtlety  and 
delicacy,  being  a  successful  effort  to  graft  the  beauties  of  the  Italian  on  the 
stamina  of  the  English  school," 


David  Cox  was  born  at  Birmingham,  in  1783  ;  his  father  was  a  smith, 
and  for  some  time  the  son,  as  we  have  heard  him  say,  worked  as  a  lad  in 
the  same  business.  His  constitution,  however,  was  not  sufficiently  robust 
for  such  a  pursuit,  and  having  an  inclination  for  drawing,  he  turned  his 
attention  to  it,  by  painting  small  pictures  from  prints,  and  ornamenting  some 
of  the  manufactured  articles  for  which  his  native  town  is  famous.  His 
remuneration  for  such  works  was  scanty,  but  his  wants  were  very  limited, 
so  he  persevered  in  his  labours  till  circumstances  should  arise  when  his 
industry  and  improving  talent  might  be  turned  into  a  more  productive 
channel.  Such  an  opportunity  occurred  at  length.  The  Birmingham 
Theatre,  at  the  time  referred  to,  was  under  the  management  of  the  father 
of  Mr.  Macready,  the  eminent  tragedian,  who  was  then  a  boy  at  Rugby 
School.  The  manager  wanted  a  scene  painter,  and  young  Cox  received 
the  appointment.  With  Macready's  company  he  visited  some  of  the  prin- 
cipal towns  in  the  midland  counties,  and  at  length  found  his  way  to  London, 
having  thrown  up  his  engagement  with  his  employer.     He  next  entered  into 


X  -S 

t/3   :3 


1-1     bo 

11 


^5 


C  O  X.  3 ' 

arrangements  with  Astley  as  scene  painter  to  his  company,  then  a  migratory 
one,  and  with  him  he  travelled  into  various  parts  of  the  country  ;  but  the 
parents  of  the  artist  at  length  expressing  a  dislike  to  the  theatrical  connec- 
tion. Cox  left  his  employment,  though  he  always  had  a  predilection  for 
scene  painting.  "It's  capital  fun,"  we  have  heard  him  say  jocularly,  "to 
go  to  work  with  a  pailful  of  colour,  and  brushes  as  long  and  thick  as  a 
birch-broom."  We  know  not  how  Messrs.  Grieve,  and  Telbin,  and  Marshall 
may  accept  such  a  definition  of  their  beautiful  art ;  for  certainly  these 
painters,  with  David  Roberts,  Stanfield,  and  others,  have  made  scene  paint- 
ing an  art  that  well  merits  the  epithet  of  beautiful,  whatever  the  instruments 
or  ^oo/s  used  in  its  production. 

Cox,  still  young,  was  now  once  more  thrown  upon  his  own  resources, 
but  not  discouraged  :  he  again  set  to  work  to  make  drawings,  disposing 
of  them  wherever  he  could  find  purchasers.  As  he  walked  through 
the  streets  to  sell  his  productions,  he  would  stop  at  the  windows  where 
pictures  were  exposed  for  sale,  study  them  carefully,  if  worthy  of  his  atten- 
tion, and  gather  hints  and  ideas  from  what  he  saw,  which  he  applied  to  his 
own  practice.  John  Varley  was  at  that  time  in  great  repute  as  a  painter  in 
water  colours,  and  his  works,  as  might  have  been  expected,  attracted  the 
notice  of  Cox,  who  went  to  him,  and  received  a  few  lessons  from  the  eccentric, 
but  worthy  man,  and  clever  artist.  We  believe  this  was  the  only  instruction 
that  Cox  ever  received  from  any  one.  At  the  period  referred  to,  lithography, 
that  useful  aid  to  Art  instruction,  was  unknown,  and  not  a  few  artists  of  the 
day  contrived  to  maintain  themselves  respectably  by  making  drawings  to 
serve  as  copies  for  the  pupils  of  drawing  masters  who  either  had  no  time  to 
work  for  their  own  purposes,  or  had  not  the  ability  to  do  so.  Most  of  these 
drawings  went  into  the  country  through  the  hands  of  the  London  dealers, 
to  whom  they  were  first  sold.  Cox,  Prout,  and  others  were  among  those 
whose  drawings  in  lead  pencil,  sepia,  and  indian-ink  found  a  ready  market : 
we  knew  an  artist  some  years  ago  who  has  told  us  he  used  to  earn  eight  and 
ten  guineas  a  week  by  this  kind  of  work. 

While  residing  at  the  charming  little  village  of  Dulwich,  he  was  sought 
out  by  the  late  Earl  of  Plymouth,  then  the  Hon.  Colonel  Windsor,  who  had 
seen  and  admired  some  of  his  drawings,  and  was  desirous  of  taking  lessons  ; 
the  colonel  gave  him  some  good  introductions,  and  he  soon  began  to  improve 
his  position.      He  also  obtained  an  appointment  as   drawing  master   to  a 


3J  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

department  in  connection  with  the  Military  College  at  Sandhurst,  but  he 
could  not  endure  the  routine  duties,  the  rigid  order,  nor  the  exact  punctuality 
required  there,  and  soon  relinquished  his  post. 

We  now  reach  a  point  in  the  life  of  Cox  to  which,  perhaps,  may  be  traced 
back  that  devotion  to  Welsh  scenery  which  has  characterized  so  large  a 
portion  of  the  productions  of  his  genius.  While  occupied  in  the  manner 
just  referred  to,  he  was  introduced  to  a  lady  who  had  come  up  to  London 
from  Hereford  to  seek  a  drawing  master  for  the  pupils  in  her  establishment. 
An  engagement  was  made,  and  the  artist  went  down  into  the  country,  and 
resided  there  some  few  years,  teaching,  and  making  drawings  of  the  pic- 
turesque scenery  round  and  about  Hereford,  which  he  readily  disposed  of. 
But  the  desire  to  come  up  to  London  again  was  so  strong  that  he  threw 
up  his  engagements,  and  once  more  put  his  fortune  to  the  test  in  the  great 
metropolis. 

In  1 8 13  David  Cox  exhibited  at  the  British  Institution  a  small  oil  picture 
of  "  A  Heath  Scene,"  but  his  attention  was  almost  wholly  given  to  water 
colours.  He  was  amongst  the  early  members  of  the  London  Water-Colour 
Society,  when  it  held  its  annual  exhibitions  in  Spring  Gardens  ;  and,  since 
its  removal  to  the  gallery  it  now  possesses  in  Pall  Mall  East,  the  pictures  of 
this  artist  have  been,  with  those  who  know  and  can  appreciate  good  Art, 
among  the  most  attractive  and  admired.  But  Cox's  "  style,"  as  it  is  called, 
did  not  come  within  the  grasp  of  the  multitude  ;  they  could  not  see,  and 
therefore  could  not  understand,  its  beauty  and  its  truth.  We  have  observed 
the  finest  of  his  works  passed  by  with  a  glance  by  people  who  would  stand 
for  half  an  hour  before  a  picture  vapid,  insipid,  and  passionless,  yet  in  their 
eyes  deserving  of  favour,  because  the  qualities  it  possessed  were  those  rather 
of  patient  industry  than  of  genius. 

Cox  was  essentially  a  painter  of  English  landscape :  he  cared  not  to 
travel  out  of  his  native  land  in  search  of  subject,  and  never  went  abroad  for 
such  a  purpose,  though  he  occasionally  exhibited  something  or  other  evincing 
that  his  pencil  had  not  been  idle  when  he  was  seated  on  the  sands  of  Calais, 
or  the  benches  in  the  gardens  of  the  Tuileries.  His  love  of  the  scenery  of 
his  own  country  south  of  the  Tweed  was  maintained  throughout  his  long 
career,  and  no  artist  of  his  time  has  done  more — few  so  much — in  the  way 
of  representing  its  numerous  and  varied  beauties.  His  pictures  have  often 
reminded   us,  by  their  truth  and  simple  heartfelt  expression,  of  the  writings 


cox.  33 

of  Thomson,  the  poet  of  the  "  Seasons  :  "  the  pen  of  the  one  and  the  pencil 
of  the  other  are  equally  poetical  and  alluring  in  their  descriptions.  Wander 
with  him  where  you  will,  through  the  green  lanes  or  the  meadows,  on  the 
purple-clad  heath,  by  the  mountain-side  or  the  wooded  copse,  in  the  richly 
timbered  park,  you  are  ever  sensible  that  the  hand  which  leads  and  the  eye 
which  directs  have  been  taught  in  the  school  of  nature,  and  well  taught  too. 

From  Mr.  Ruskin's  "Modern  Painters"  we  will  extract  two  passages  in 
which  he  speaks  of  the  works  of  Cox ;  both  are  highly  complimentary, 
except  inasmuch  as  he  designates  this  artist's  peculiar  execution  as  loose 
and  blotted.  But  he  goes  on  to  say — "  There  are  no  other  means  by  which 
his  object  could  be  obtained  :  the  looseness,  coolness,  and  moisture  of  his 
herbage ;  the  rustling,  crumpled  freshness  of  his  broad-leaved  weeds ;  the 
play  of  pleasant  light  across  his  deep-heathered  moor  or  plashing  sand  ;  the 
melting  of  fragments  of  white  mist  into  the  dropping  blue  above : — all  this 
has  not  been  fully  recorded  except  by  him,  and  what  there  is  of  accidental 
in  his  mode  of  reaching  it,  answers  gracefully  to  the  accidental  part  of 
Nature  herself.  .  .  .  The  foliage  of  David  Cox  is  altogether  exquisite  in 
colour,  and  in  its  impressions  of  coolness,  shade,  and  mass  ;  of  its  drawing 
I  cannot  say  anything,  but  that  I  should  be  sorry  to  see  it  better." 

Just  before  his  death  the  merits  of  Cox  were  put  to  the  most  severe 
trial  possible.  An  exhibition  was  held  at  the  "German  Caller}'"  in  New 
Bond  Street,  at  which  170  of  his  pictures  were  shown — a  few  only  of  them 
being  paintings  in  oil.  Most  conspicuous  amongst  the  pieces  in  water 
colours  was  "Meadows  on  the  River  Lugg,  Herefordshire,"  at  that  time  in 
the  collection  of  Mr.  John  Allnutt,  one  of  Cox's  earliest  patrons. 

We  know  not  the  date  of  the  picture,  but  it  must  have  been  quite  an 
early  work  :  it  is  very  unlike  his  subsequent  productions,  and  even  unlike 
any  others  we  remember  from  his  pencil.  He  seems  to  have  had  the  drawings 
of  the  late  George  Barrett  in  his  mind  when  he  painted  it :  and  if,  as  may 
not  unreasonably  be  inferred,  he  desired  for  once  to  attempt  an  imitation, 
the  success  could  not  be  more  complete.  Barrett  was  frequently  called  the 
"  English  Claude  of  water-colour  painting  ;  "  and  those  who  know  the  works 
of  Claude,  and  of  Barrett  also,  can  scarcely  fail  to  be  reminded  of  both  by 
this  composition  :  instead  of  the  bold,  sharp,  and  apparently  careless  touch  of 
Cox's  usual  handling,  there  is  here  the  round  and  studied  forms  which  are 
characteristic  of  the  foliage  of  the  two  painters  to  whom  we  have  referred. 

F 


34  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

The  surface  of  the  drawing — a  large  one — is  smooth,  and  the  tone  throughout 
warm  and  golden,  as  if  few  other  colours  but  browns  and  yellows  had  been 
used  for  it :  not  a  hue  is  visible  of  the  fresh,  luxuriant  green  which  Cox 
loved  to  represent ;  yet  it  is  a  charming  picture,  eloquent  of  sunshine  and 
quietude. 

Our  second  engraving,  "Deer  Stalking,  Bolton  Park,"  is  from  a  large 
drawing;  it  may  be  taken  as  a  fine  example  of  the  artist's  style  at  the  best 
period  of  his  career :  the  whole  scene  is  one  of  those  rich  and  picturesque 
woodland  views  that  are  rarely  seen  out  of  England,  and  which  none  treated 
with  more  feeling  and  beauty. 

It  is  gratifying  to  know  that  a  younger  David  Cox,  the  son  of  our  artist, 
is  following  in  his  father's  footsteps  with  considerable  success:  some  of  his 
paintings  in  water  colours  have  already  crossed  the  Atlantic. 

We  have  spoken  of  him  as  an  original  artist — original,  that  is,  in  manner ; 
for,  unlike  another  great  and  original  landscape  painter.  Turner,  he  never 
went — nor  even  appeared  to  go — beyond  the  bounds  of  ordinary  nature ;  and 
one  proof  of  the  originality  of  both  is,  that  no  painter  presumes  to  copy 
them :  the  difficulty  of  the  task  is  perhaps  the  safest  guarantee  against  imita- 
tion. But  Cox  has  exercised  a  most  favourable  influence  on  our  school  of 
water-colour  painters ;  there  are  many  whose  works  manifest  the  master 
whose  guiding  they  followed ;  while  few  have  passed  from  us  more  admired 
as  an  artist,  and  more  loved  and  respected  as  a  man,  than  the  veteran  David 
Cox. 


Devonshire,  rich  in  natural  scenery,  claims  as  its  sons  two  Presidents  of 
the  Royal  Academy,  Reynolds  and  Eastlake ;  Haydon,  too,  as  we  have  seen, 
was  born  in  Plymouth,  so  that  no  less  than  three  of  the  great  artists  treated 
of  in  our  present  chapter  first  saw  the  light  in  that  county. 

The  family  of  Sir  Charles  Lock  Eastlake  had  long  been  settled  in 
Plymouth  and  its  vicinity.  Whatever  taste  he  may  have  evinced,  when 
young,  for  the  Arts,  it  is  clear  that  his  friends  did  not  propose  to  make  a 
painter  of  him,  for  he  was  sent  to  Charterhouse  School  to  receive  his  educa- 
tion. How  long  he  continued  there  we  know  not,  but  doubtless  a  sufficient 
time  to  acquire  so  much  classical  learning  and  other  kinds  of  knowledge  as 
proved  of  intimate  service  to  him  in  after  life. 


EASTLAKE.  35 

It  was  one  of  those  "  accidents,"  as  we  are  apt  to  call  certain  circum- 
stances and  events  which  sometimes  determine  a  man's  course  of  life,  that 
induced  Eastlake  to  become  an  artist.  Haydon  was  staying  in  his  native 
town,  employed  on  his  really  fine  picture  of  "The  Death  of  Dentatus ; " 
young  Eastlake  saw  it,  and  was  so  impressed  by  the  work  that  he  at  once 
made  up  his  mind  to  be  a  painter.  He  accordingly  came  up  to  London  and 
entered  the  schools  of  the  Academy,  where  he  studied  for  two  or  three  years 
under  the  direction  of  Fuseli  ;  at  the  expiration  of  this  term  he  painted  a 
picture  of  "The  Raising  of  Jairus'  Daughter:"  it  was  purchased  by  the 
late  Mr.  Jeremiah  Harman.  At  the  request  of  Mr.  Harman,  his  young 
pivfcgc  went  to  Paris  to  copy  in  the  Louvre,  but  the  return  of  Napoleon  from 
Elba  compelled  him  to  relinquish  his  occupation  earlier  than  he  intended. 
Eastlake  returned  home,  and  commenced  portrait-painting  in  his  native  town. 
Among  these  portraits  the  most  conspicuous  was  that  of  the  Emperor 
Napoleon,  as  he  stood  in  1815  on  the  gangway  of  the  Belleroplio)i,  in 
Plymouth  Sound — 

"The  last  single  captive  to  millions  in  war." 

The  picture  is  remarkable  as  well  for  the  fidelity  of  the  representa- 
tion, as  for  its  being  the  last  portrait  of  Napoleon  painted  in  Europe  from 
the  life. 

Two  years  after  this,  namely  in  181 7,  Eastlake  set  out  for  Italy.  He 
remained  there  two  years,  and  then,  accompanied  by  some  friends,  among 
whom  was  Sir  Charles  Barry,  R.A.,  proceeded  to  Greece ;  in  the  follow- 
ing year  he  made  the  tour  of  Sicily,  returning  to  Rome,  where  he  appears 
to  have  taken  up  his  residence  for  some  time,  for  on  reference  to  the 
catalogues  of  the  Royal  Academy  we  find  his  pictures  marked  "  C.  L.  East- 
lake,  Rome,"  to  the  year  1829.  We  are  not  sure  whether  he  revisited 
England  during  the  intervening  period,  and  believe  he  did  not ;  he  therefore 
must  have  been  absent  twelve  years. 

The  first  two  pictures  sent  home  for  exhibition  of  which  we  have  any 
recollection  were  "A  Girl  of  Albano  leading  a  Blind  Woman  to  Mass,"  in 
1825,  and  "  Isidas,  the  Spartan,  repelling  the  Thebans,"  in  1827  :  the  latter 
work  is  a  bold  and  spirited  composition,  in  a  style  altogether  differing 
from  his  more  recent  works,  and  one  which,  on  many  accounts,  we 
almost  wish  he  had  persevered  in,  notwithstanding  the  merits  which  belong 


36  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

to  his  later  productions.  The  works  of  the  future  President  had  now 
found  so  much  favour  with  the  Royal  Academy,  that  in  this  year  he  was 
elected  Associate :  rather  an  early  step  into  Academical  honours,  consi- 
dering how  short  a  time  his  pictures  had  been  before  the  public.  In  1828 
appeared  the  first  of  several  almost  similar  compositions  on  which  his  pencil 
was  at  various  times  engaged,  "  An  Italian  Scene  in  the  Anno  Saiifo : 
Pilgrims  arriving  in  sight  of  Rome  and  St.  Peter's — Evening."  The  artist 
has  treated  these  themes  with  much  poetical  feeling,  and  exceeding  grace 
and  refinement :  these,  in  truth,  are  the  prevailing  qualities  of  his  style. 

In  1830  he  was  elected  Academician;  his  exhibited  pictures  of  the  year 
were  "  Una  delivering  the  Red  Cross  Knight,"  from  the  "  Faerie  Oueene," 
and  "A  Contadina  Family  returning  from  a  Festa,  Prisoners  with  Banditti," 
a  subject  which  the  painter  repeated  on  more  than  one  occasion.  In  1833 
he  sent  two  paintings  of  "Italian  Peasant  Girls,"  and  one  of  "Greek 
Fugitives  :  an  English  Ship  sending  its  Boats  to  rescue  them." 

One  of  two  small  pictures  of  1839  showed  the  artist  in  a  style  in  which  he 
had  not  hitherto  appeared — one,  too,  which  very  considerably  increased  his 
reputation  ;  we  wish  he  had  painted  more  of  such  works,  for  we  believe  his 
strength  lay  in  them.  This  picture  is  "Christ  blessing  little  Children,"  a 
subject  he  treated  with  infinite  sweetness  and  delicacy  in  composition  and 
colour.  The  other,  entitled  "  La  Svegliarina,"  is  a  gem  worthy  of  the  artist's 
pxire  taste  and  feeling :  it  is  now  in  Paris. 

"The  Salutation  of  the  aged  Friar,"  painted  in  1840,  an  Italian  scene,  in 
which  are  introduced  a  number  of  young  females,  was  one  of  the  great 
attractions  of  the  year:  it  represents  a  touching  incident,  gracefully  illus- 
trated. In  the  next  year  appeared  what  many  consider  his  masterpiece, 
"  Christ  weeping  over  Jerusalem ;  "  it  has  a  deservedly  world-wide  reputation, 
and  has  been  engraved  two  or  three  times. 

From  this  date  the  annual  contributions  of  Eastlake  to  the  Academy  may 
be  counted  by  units,  for  he  has  rarely  exhibited  since  more  than  a  single 
picture ;  his  various  public  engagements,  especially  those  connected  with  the 
"  Royal  Commission  "  on  the  new  Houses  of  Parliament,  to  which  we  shall 
hereafter  refer,  added  to  his  literary  occupations,  absorbed  much  of  the  time 
that  would  otherwise  have  been  passed  at  the  easel  in  his  studio. 

A  small  but  elegant  composition,  exhibited  in  1842,  and  entitled  "The 
Sisters,"    is   in   the   Royal    Collection.      The  following  year   Eastlake   was 


«    -.1 


3  i> 


> 


■i. 


E  A  STL  A  K  E.  37 

appointed  Librarian  of  the  Academy,  in  the  place  of  G.  Jones,  R.A.,  who  had 
resigned  the  office:  his  picture  of  the  year  was  "  Hagar  and  Ishmael ;  "  a 
beautiful  example  of  the  painter's  pure,  simple,  yet  dignified  style  in  com- 
position, drawing,  and  colour. 

The  accumulation  of  public  business  on  his  hands  compelled  Eastlakc,  in 
1845,  '^o  relinquish  the  post  of  Librarian  at  the  Academy;  he  was  succeeded 
by  Thomas  Uwins,  R.A.  Eastlake's  picture  this  year  was  a  scene  from 
Milton's  "  Comus,"  a  copy  of  the  fresco,  it  is  believed,  which  he  executed  in 
the  summer-house  in  the  gardens  of  Buckingham  Palace  for  the  Queen  ;  the 
picture  seems  to  have  been  painted  to  test  the  capabilities  of  fresco ;  but 
though  fanciful  and  elegant  as  a  composition,  it  cannot  stand  comparison 
with  his  other  works. 

The  death  of  Sir  M.  A.  Shee,  in  August,  1850,  left  vacant  the  President's 
chair  of  the  Royal  Academy;  there  could  have  been  no  doubt,  we  apprehend, 
in  the  minds  of  the  members — most  certainly  there  was  none  in  the  opinion 
of  the  public — as  to  who  was  the  fittest  among  them  in  every  way  to  be  his 
successor :  the  choice,  as  might  have  been  expected,  fell  on  Eastlake,  and 
none  other  could  with  any  propriety  have  been  made.  One  scarcely  knows 
whether  to  rejoice  at  or  to  regret  his  elevation ;  for  he  seemed  from  that  time 
almost  lost  to  us  as  a  painter,  though  the  Arts  were  unquestionably  deriving 
benefit  from  his  labours  in  their  behalf.  The  first  picture  exhibited  by  the 
new  President,  now  become  Sir  C.  L.  Eastlake,  was  a  head  and  bust,  to  which 
was  appended  the  title  of  "  Ippolita  Torrelli,"  suggested  by  the  Poonnta  of 
Castiglione.  The  following  year  was  a  total  blank,  but  in  1853  appeared 
another  picture  from  sacred  history,  "  Ruth  sleeping  at  the  Feet  of  Boaz." 

The  works  of  a  painter  are  the  reflex  of  his  mind ;  and  thus,  when,  as  a 
young  painter,  Eastlake  would  naturally  feel  the  impulse  of  stirring  aspira- 
tions, we  see  them  developed  in  his  "  Isidas  repelling  the  Thebans,"  and 
"  The  Brigand's  Wife,"  where  energy,  action,  and  strong  motives  and 
passions  predominate.  Such  feelings,  however,  soon  softened  down  to  what 
we  must  presume  to  have  been  more  in  harmony  with  his  actual  nature :  his 
subsequent  productions  therefore  are,  almost  without  an  exception,  of  that 
soft,  gentle,  and  persuasive  character  which  wins  and  charms,  but  never 
forces  attention.  A  crowded  exhibition  room,  with  its  various  distractions, 
is  not  the  fittest  place — we  should  rather  say  not  by  any  means  a  suitable 
place — in  which  to  study  his  works ;    they  should  be  examined  and  thought 


38  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

over  in  the  quietude  of  retirement ;  this  is  the  only  way  to  become  acquainted 
with  their  true  merits,  and  to  feel  how  large  a  portion  of  his  own  refined  and 
delicate  mind  is  reflected  in  his  pictures.  There  is  a  tone  of  gravity  united 
with  purity  of  feeling  that  pervades  all  his  compositions,  and  these  qualities 
are  carried  out  even  to  a  subdued  and  "reposing"  style  of  colour — which, 
however,  is  rarely  deficient  in  warmth  and  clearness :  they  are  almost 
invariably  appeals  to  the  most  tender  and  compassionate  sympathies  of  human 
nature. 

As  President  of  the  Royal  Academy  he  not  only  maintained  in  a  high 
degree,  as  a  painter,  the  honour  of  the  school  of  which  he  was  at  the  head,  but 
he  very  materially  aided  in  the  education  of  that  school  by  his  contributions 
to  Art  literature  :  and  here  we  find  the  advantages  of  that  early  attention  to 
letters  which  his  school  training  induced.  We  desire  not,  as  a  rule,  to  see 
artists  wielding  the  pen  and  the  pencil  alternately — some  have  done  so  to 
their  injury ;  but  as  we  believe  none  can  write  so  well  upon  Art  as  those  who 
have  a  practical  acquaintance  with  it,  we  should  be  pleased  to  see  every 
artist  so  educated  as  to  be  able  to  express  his  views,  even  in  a  book,  if  he 
thought  proper  to  write  one. 

The  writings  of  Sir  Charles  Eastlake  must  not  be  forgotten.  Most 
important  amongst  these  are  his  "Materials  for  a  History  of  Oil  Painting" 
and  "Contributions  to  the  Literature  of  the  Fine  Arts."  His  translations  of 
Goethe's  "  Farbenlehre,"  and  of  Kiigler's  "Handbook  of  Painting"  are 
enriched  with  valuable  notes.  Lady  Eastlake,  too,  is  well  known  as  an 
authoress  by  her  "  Livonian  Tales  "  and  "  Letters  from  the  Baltic." 

Allusion  has  been  already  made  to  the  Royal  Commission  for  the  new 
Houses  of  Parliament ;  the  important  post  of  Secretary  was  intrusted  to 
Eastlake.  The  late  Prince  Consort,  in  his  capacity  of  President  of  this 
Commission,  spoke  in  feeling  terms  of  the  courtesy,  refinement,  and  kindness 
of  the  artist.  Indeed,  it  was  rather  to  these  than  to  extreme  merit  as  a 
painter  that  the  choice  of  him  for  the  most  exalted  position  in  the  Royal 
Academy  was  due.  Sir  Charles  Lock  Eastlake  died  at  Pisa  in  1865,  in  the 
seventy-first  year  of  his  age. 


David  Roberts  was  born  at  Stockbridge,  near  Edinburgh,  October  24th, 
1796:  his  early  love  of  Art  may  in  some  measure  be  traced  to  a  mother  to 


ROBERTS.  39 

whom  he  was  devotedly  attached.  She  was  a  native  of  the  ancient  episcopal 
town  of  St.  Andrew's,  and  often  spoke  to  him  of  the  magnificent  remains  of 
the  cathedral  and  monastic  edifices  of  this  once  celebrated  seat  of  learning. 
These  conversations,  together  with  the  legends  connected  with  the  locality, 
made  a  strong  impression  upon  his  boyish  mind,  and  no  doubt  influenced  his 
taste  for  Art  towards  that  particular  department  which  he  may  be  said  to 
have  made  his  own,  for  there  was  scarcely  an  old  castle  or  ruined  chapel  in  or 
around  his  native  town  that  he  did  not  visit  and  sketch  when  a  boy.  By  the 
advice  of  Graham,  director  of  the  "Trustees'  Academy"  at  Edinburgh,  and 
the  master  of  Wilkie  and  Allan,  young  Roberts,  at  the  early  age  of  about  ten 
years,  was  apprenticed  to  a  house-painter  named  Gavin  Beugo,  who,  having 
once  followed  the  business  of  a  herald-painter,  probably  gave  the  lad  some 
little  instruction  in  drawing :  beyond  this,  we  believe,  he  was  never  indebted 
to  a  single  individual  for  helping  him  onwards  in  the  art  he  practised  with  so 
great  honour  to  himself,  and  so  instructively  and  delightfully  for  others.  His 
own  perseverance  and  unwearied  industry  enabled  him  to  overcome  difficulties 
which,  even  with  the  aid  of  the  best  instruction,  are  but  rarely  mastered. 

After  having  served  a  long  and  wearisome  apprenticeship  of  seven  years 
to  Beugo,  a  harsh  and  overbearing  master,  we  hear  of  him,  in  1818,  as 
assistant  scene-painter  at  the  Pantheon,  a  second-rate  theatre  in  Edinburgh, 
under  one  Dearlove,  of  whom  nothing  is  known.  In  the  following  year  he 
became  principal  painter  at  the  Theatre  Royal,  Glasgow,  and  in  1820  and 
1 82 1,  at  the  Theatre  Royal,  Edinburgh.  Before  the  latter  year  expired,  his 
fame  had  reached  the  ears  of  the  then  lessee  of  Drury  Lane,  the  celebrated 
Elliston,  who  offered  him  an  engagement  for  three  years,  in  conjunction  with 
his  friend  Clarkson  Stanfield. 

From  this  point  of  time  the  history  of  Roberts  as  a  painter  in  oils  really 
commences,  his  first  picture  being  exhibited  at  the  British  Institution  in  1824. 
It  was  about  this  period  that  the  Society  of  British  Artists  was  instituted  ; 
both  Stanfield  and  Roberts  were  among  its  original  members :  here,  as  well 
as  at  the  British  Institution  and  the  Royal  Academy,  both  were  constant 
exhibitors.  But  all  who  remember  the  beautiful  series  of  pictures,  for  they 
could  scarcely  be  called  scenes,  which  the  two  artists  produced  at  Drurj^  Lane 
and  Covent  Garden  Theatres  till  1830,  must  have  felt  how  greatly  these 
pictorial  works  influenced  public  taste  in  what  was  beautiful  in  scenic  art,  and 
how  greatly  they  were  in  advance  of  previously  existing  performances. 


40  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

The  first  picture  exhibited  at  the  Academy  by  Roberts  was  a  "  View  of 
Rouen  Cathedral;"  this  was  in  1826.  Notwithstanding  the  incessant 
demands  upon  his  time  during  the  early  period  of  his  career,  he  found 
frequent  opportunities  for  visiting  the  continent,  for  many  of  his  exhibited 
pictures  were  subjects  sketched  in  France,  Germany,  and  Belgium,  while  his 
own  native  land  was  not  forgotten  :  every  successive  year,  during  the  life- 
time of  his  parents,  did  he  visit  them,  and  on  these  occasions  he  was 
accustomed  to  make  excursions  through  various  parts  of  Scotland  containing 
remarkable  ancient  edifices,  of  which  he  made  drawings.  One  of  the  results 
arising  from  these  home-travels  was  a  series  of  etchings  on  copper,  by  his 
own  hand,  of  the  antiquities  of  Scotland,  which  were  carried  to  a  considerable 
extent ;  but  from  circumstances  over  which  he  had  unfortunately  little  control, 
they  were  abandoned  and  never  again  resumed. 

As  soon  as  he  found  himself  firmly  established  in  the  estimation  of  the 
public  in  a  line  of  Art  almost  entirely  his  own,  and  enjoying  the  support  and 
friendship  of  some  of  the  greatest  patrons  of  Art,  among  whom  Lord  North- 
wick  claims  especial  mention,  Roberts  gradually  relinquished  painting  for  the 
theatres,  and  restricted  his  labours  within  the  limits  of  the  studio.  With  the 
view  of  opening  up  what  to  him  was  new  ground  for  operations,  he  proposed 
to  visit  Italy ;  but  his  friend  Wllkie  advised  him  to  relinquish  this  plan  and 
explore  Spain  Instead,  as  a  country  less  known,  and  one  offering  a  richer 
field  for  his  pencil ;  this  was  In  1832.  The  same  year,  and  before  quitting 
England,  he  completed,  and  superintended  the  engraving  of,  a  series  of 
drawings  for  Sir  E.  Bulwer  Lytton's  "  Pilgrims  of  the  Rhine,"  a  work 
created,  so  to  speak,  by  those  elegant  serials,  the  "  Annuals."  It  is  not,  we 
believe,  generally  known  that  the  drawings  alluded  to  were  Intended  origin- 
ally to  come  out  as  an  "Annual,"  and  the  book  was  actually  written  for  the 
drawings,  instead  of  the  drawings  being  made  to  suit  the  text,  as  one  would 
naturally  suppose  In  a  work  of  this  character. 

Roberts  devoted  a  portion  of  1832,  and  the  greater  part  of  the  following 
year,  to  his  Spanish  tour  ;  and  after  visiting  Burgos,  Madrid,  Toledo,  Segovia, 
Cordova,  Granada,  Malaga,  Gibraltar,  Cadiz,  and  Seville,  settled  down  for  a 
time  In  the  last-named  city,  where,  acting  upon  the  suggestion  of  another 
artlst-frlend,  the  late  Sir  William  Allan,  he  painted  several  pictures  in  oil, 
two  of  the  principal  of  which  are  the  property  of  Mr.  Lewis  Lloyd,  namely, 
"  The  Interior  of  the  Cathedral  of  Seville  during  the  Ceremony  of  the  Corpus 


ROBERTS.  4, 

Christi,"  and  "  The  Tower  at  Seville,  called  'the  Garalda.'  "  On  his  return 
from  Spain,  in  the  latter  part  of  1833,  he  followed  the  series  of  beautiful 
annuals  commenced  by  Prout,  and  continued  by  Harding,  which  were  pub- 
lished by  Jennings  under  the  title  of  "The  Landscape  Annual."  Roberts's 
contributions  to  this  work  extended  over  four  consecutive  years,  and  with  the 
exception  of  John  Lewis's  "Sketches  in  Spain,"  they  are  almost  the  sole 
pictorial  records  we  have  of  that  romantic  and  picturesque  country  :  they 
have  been  copied,  or  rather  pirated,  again  and  again.  One  of  the  best 
pictures  that  have  come  from  his  easel  is  a  Spanish  subject,  "  The  Chapel 
of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  at  Granada;  "  it  was  exhibited  at  the  Royal 
Academy  in  1836,  and  was  purchased  by  the  late  celebrated  connoisseur, 
Mr.  Beckford,  of  Fonthill  Abbey.  This  work,  in  all  probability,  was 
indirectly,  if  not  directly,  the  means  of  his  secession  from  the  Society  of 
British  Artists — of  which,  by  the  way,  he  was  for  some  time  vice-president — 
and  ultimately  of  his  placing  himself  on  the  list  of  candidates  for  admission 
into  the  ranks  of  the  Royal  Academy.  It  was  necessary  to  withdraw  from  his 
old  colleagues  in  Suffolk  Street  to  render  himself  eligible  for  election  into  the 
academical  body,  for  by  one  of  its  standing  rules  no  member  of  any  other  Art 
institution  in  London  was  allowed  to  become  a  candidate  for  the  Academy. 
Stanfield  having  led  the  way  already  in  this  move,  his  friend  Roberts  qualified 
himself  for  following  in  the  same  steps  by  paying  the  fine  provided  by  the 
laws  of  the  Society  of  British  Artists  in  the  event  of  secession  by  one  of  its 
members,  amounting  to  one  hundred  pounds,  and  a  similar  sum  for  his  share 
of  its  liabilities.  It  is  not  for  us  to  question  how  far  these  two  pillars  of  that 
institution  were  right  in  their  withdrawal,  but  certain  it  is  that  the  interests  of 
the  society  were  materially  affected  by  their  absence  from  its  annual  exhi- 
bitions, no  less  than  from  its  councils.  At  this  time  David  Roberts  had 
attained  considerable  renown  and  position ;  he  could  reckon  among  his 
friends  Wilkie,  Turner,  Callcott,  and  Landseer ;  while  his  works  had  found 
place  in  the  collections  of  Lord  Northwick,  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  Mr.  Vernon, 
Mr.  Sheepshanks,  and  many  others  of  the  most  liberal  patrons  of  Art. 

But  he  was  not  content  to  rest  on  his  oars.  Supplied  with  letters  of 
introduction  from  the  Foreign  Office  to  General  Campbell,  Consul- General 
for  Egypt,  Roberts  started  from  England  on  his  great  and  hazardous 
expedition  in  August,  1838,  taking  the  route  by  Paris  and  Marseilles.  He 
arrived  in  Egypt  at  the  period  of  the  year  that  is  termed  "  high  Nile,"  when 

G 


42  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

the  Delta  is  under  water — a  time  when  that  most  remarkable  country  is  seen 
to  the  greatest  advantage,  and  when  each  village,  mosque,  and  temple  seems 
to  float  upon  the  surface  of  the  water.  On  reaching  Cairo  the  traveller  found 
the  consul  ready  to  afford  him  every  assistance  in  the  prosecution  of  his 
object. 

He  shortly  afterwards  ascended  the  Nile  in  a  boat  fully  equipped,  pro- 
vided for  him  by  General  Campbell,  and  though  two  English  gentlemen  who 
accompanied  him  soon  became  blind  from  ophthalmia,  we  have  heard  him 
remark  that  he  never  enjoyed  better  health  than  during  the  period  he  passed 
on  this  river.  It  was  not  till  his  return  to  Cairo,  in  the  month  of  December, 
that  he  heard  of  his  election,  during  his  absence,  into  the  Academy  as 
Associate ;  the  intelligence  reached  him  at  an  opportune  moment,  for  he  had 
been  left  so  much  by  himself  and  to  his  own  meditations  that,  as  he  once  told 
us,  he  had  "begun  to  take  an  unfavourable  view  of  most  things." 

In  February,  1839,  he  left  Cairo  to  cross  the  desert  by  way  of  Suez, 
Mount  Sinai,  and  Petra,  with  a  caravan  of  twenty-one  camels ;  one  of  his 
companions,  Mr.  J.  W.  Kinnear,  afterwards  published  an  account  of  the 
journey.*  He  reached  Jerusalem  at  Easter,  and  after  having  visited  the  most 
remarkable  places  "  from  Dan  to  Beersheba"  illustrative  of  Biblical  history, 
he  returned  to  England  in  the  latter  part  of  1839  :  he  had  been  absent 
sixteen  months. 

The  fruits  of  this  expedition  are  too  well  known  to  require  pointing  out — 
Roberts's  "Holy  Land"  has  a  world-wide  reputation;  nothing  of  a  similar 
character  has  ever  been  produced  that  can  bear  comparison  with  it. 

It  would  be  superfluous  to  attempt  to  give  any  analytical  description  of 
the  works  of  this  artist.  His  subjects  are  selected  from  the  finest  examples  of 
ancient  architecture  which  Europe  possesses,  whether  ecclesiastical,  civic,  or 
domestic :  his  drawing  is  truthful,  his  colouring  rich  and  brilliant,  while  the 
interest  of  the  subjects  is  greatly  augmented  by  the  picturesque  groups  of 
figures  vividly  and  characteristically  introduced. 

He  painted  but  few  imaginary  pictures ;  his  two  great  works  of  this  class 
are — "The  Departure  of  the  Israelites  from  Egypt,"  engraved  many  years 
ago  by  Ouilley,  in  mezzotint ;  and  "  The  Destruction  of  Jerusalem  by 
the  Romans,"  reproduced  in  chromo-lithography  by  Louis  Haghe;  they  are 
both  grand  compositions — epic  poems   on  canvas,  they  may  be  called.     At 

*  "  Cairo,  Petra,  and  Damascus,"  by  J.  W.  Kinnear.     Published  by  J.  Murray,  London. 


CHURCH   OF  ST.   GOMER,  BRUSSELS. 

From  a  Painting  by  David  Roberts,  R.A. 


STAN  FIELD.  43 

the  time  of  his  death,  which  took  place  in  November,  1864,  a  large  collection 
of  his  pictures  was  being  exhibited  at  the  Crystal  Palace.  Many  of  his  old 
friends  whose  circumstances  were  less  prosperous  than  his  own  had  for  years 
experienced  the  benefit  of  an  unostentatious  or  even  anonymous  bounty. 

We  have  selected  as  examples  of  this  artist's  work:    "Portico    of  the 
Temple,  Edfou,  Upper  Egypt,"  and  "Church  of  St.  Gomer,  Brussels." 


Clarkson  Stanfield  was  a    native    of  Sunderland,   in    the    county    of 
Durham  ;  he  was  born,  we  believe,  in  1798.     The  fact  of  his  boyhood  having 
been  passed  in  a  seaport  town,  where  everybody,  as  well  as  everything,  is,  or 
seems  to  be,  impregnated  with  sea  air  and  salt  water,  had,  no  doubt,  consi- 
derable influence  in  determining  him  to  enter  the  marine  service,  in  which 
he  passed  several  years  of  his  early  life,  and  thereby  acquired  a  partiality 
for  the  class  of  Art  which  he  has  since  so  successfully  followed,  and  such  an 
acquaintance  with  the  sea  and  shipping  as  enabled  him  to  attain  the  high 
position  he  has  reached  as  a  marine  painter.     He  made  his  first  appearance 
in  London  as  an  exhibitor  in   1823,  at  the  Society  of  British  Artists,  in  the 
formation  of  which  he,  with  David  Roberts  and  some  others  who  have  risen 
to  high  distinction,  took  great  interest.     But  before  speaking  of  the  pictures 
which  have  passed  out  of  Stanfield's  studio,  it  will  be  necessary  to  allude  to 
another  branch  of  Art  with  which  his  name  is  honourably  associated,  because 
we  are  of  opinion  it  laid  the  foundation  for  a  large  portion  of  his  future  excellence. 
While  Stanfield  was  serving  at  sea,  we  have  heard  that  he  used  frequently 
to  amuse  himself  with  painting,  employing  whatever  materials  were  at  his 
command.     On  his  settlement  in  London,  he  engaged  himself  to  paint  scenes 
for  one  of  the  minor  theatres.     Here  was  an  excellent  school  of  practice,  from 
which    the   artist,    no    doubt,  derived    considerable   benefit,  and    through    it 
Stanfield  himself  was  the  means  of  raising  scene-painting  to  the  dignity  of 
Art :    before  his  time  it  was  little  else  than  daubing  for  the  stage.     We  are 
old  enough  to  remember  the  beautiful  drop-scenes  and  dioramic  views  which 
he  subsequently  painted  for  Drury  Lane — they  were  pictures  of  real  beauty, 
so  beautiful  as  to  make  it  a  matter  of  sincere  regret  that  they  should  have 
passed  away  with  the  season  which  called  them  into  existence.     To  Stanfield 
and  David  Roberts  must  be  assigned  the  honour  of  rendering  the  scenery  of 
the  British  stage  what  it  now  is,  the  best  in  Europe. 


44  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

The  first  of  Stanfield's  easel  pictures  that  attracted  marked  attention  was 
"  Market  Boats  on  the  Scheldt,"  exhibited  at  the  British  Institution  in  1826  : 
the  picturesque  grouping  of  the  boats  laden  with  various  commodities,  the 
number  and  diversity  of  figures  in  gay  costumes,  all  reflected  in  the  quiet 
surface  of  the  water,  constituted  a  representation  as  agreeable  to  the  eye  as  it 
was  true  to  nature.  In  the  following  year  he  exhibited,  in  the  same  gallery, 
the  "Wreckers  off  Fort  Rouge,  Calais,"  a  work  of  far  greater  originality  and 
power  than  the  preceding :  many  of  our  readers  may  probably  know  the 
subject  from  Ouilley's  mezzotint  engraving;  the  print,  however,  conveys  but 
an  imperfect  idea  of  the  spirit  of  the  original.  In  the  same  year  (1827)  his 
name  first  appears  in  the  catalogue  of  the  Royal  Academy,  appended  to  a 
picture  entitled  "A  Calm." 

On  reference  to  our  catalogue  of  the  Academy  Exhibition  of  1 830,  we  find 
sundry  "  notes  "  of  commendation  upon  his  picture  of  "  Mount  St.  Michael, 
Cornwall ;  "  certainly  it  is  superior  to  the  "Wreckers." 

It  was  about  this  period,  we  presume,  that  Stanfield  first  visited  the 
Continent,  for  he  exhibited  at  the  Academy,  in  1831,  four  pieces,  entitled 
respectively  "A  Storm,"  "  Strasburg,"  "Venice,"  and  "A  Fisherman  of 
Honfleur;"  the  three  last  were  drawings.  These  foreign  scenes  constituted 
the  advance-guard  of  that  long  array  of  continental  scenes  which  we  have 
seen  passing  before  us,  and  ever  welcome,  up  to  the  present  time.  In  1832 
he  exhibited  at  the  British  Institution  "Portsmouth  Harbour,"  a  commission 
from  William  IV.,  and  in  the  autumn  of  the  same  year  he  was  elected  Associate 
of  the  Academy. 

In  1833  he  exhibited  at  the  Academy  the  first  of  a  series  of  large  pictures 
commissioned  by  the  Marquis  of  Lansdowne  for  the  banqueting-room  at 
Bowood ;  they  are  ten  in  number,  and  are  inserted  in  the  panels  of  the  wall : 
the  subjects  are  all  of  Italian  scenery, — the  "Piazza  di  San  Marco,"  the 
islands  of  "  Mazerbo  "  and  "  Livenza,"  the  "  Ducal  Palace  from  the  Dogana," 
"Sta.  Maria  della  Saluta,"  the  island  of  "  Murano,"  "  Citara,"  &c.,  &c. 
This  last  completed  the  number ;    it  was  finished  in  1840. 

About  this  time  it  was  that  those  charming  ephemeral  illustrated  books 
called  "Annuals"  were  at  the  height  of  their  popularity:  Stanfield  executed 
a  number  of  drawings,  varied  in  interest  and  beautiful  in  character,  for  the 
"Picturesque  Annual,"  which  were  published  in  the  years  1834  and  1835. 
In  the  latter  year  he  was  elected  Academician. 


riLBURY   FORT-WIND   AGAINST   TIDE. 
From  a  Painting  by  Clarkson  Stanfield,  R.A. 


.9  rA  N  FI  E  L  D.  45 

In  1S36  he  exhibited  his  large  picture  of  the  "Battle  of  Trafalgar," 
painted  for  the  Senior  United  Service  Club.  This  is  generally  allowed  to  be 
his  masterpiece;  the  original  sketch  was  purchased  by  the  late  Mr.  Vernon, 
and  now  belongs  to  the  nation. 

We  pass  over  the  succeeding  two  years  of  Stanfield's  life — although  they 
were  productive  of  several  admirable  works — simply  because  of  our  limited 
space  :  in  1839  he  was  absent  abroad  ;  but  in  1840  there  hung  on  the  walls 
of  the  Academy  six  pictures  from  his  pencil,  all  of  them  Italian  or  French 
landscapes  of  a  high  order  of  merit. 

Stanfield  was  a  most  prolific  painter ;  for  years  after  the  date  we  have 
reached  he  continued  to  contribute  on  the  average  four  or  five  pictures 
annually  to  the  Academy.  We  have  not  space  even  to  enumerate  those 
which  are  well  known,  so  popular  an  artist  was  he  in  his  time. 

In  1S44  he  left  the  fair  country  of  Italy  and  carried  us  to  the  shores 
of  Holland,  through  thfe  medium  of  two  pictures — one,  "  Oude  Scheldt,  Texel 
Island,"  a  comparatively  small  but  beautiful  example  of  his  pencil;  the  other, 
a  truly  noble  composition,  "  The  Day  after  the  Wreck — a  Dutch  East- 
Indiaman  on  shore  in  the  Ooster  Schelde," — this  work,  studied  carefully  in 
all  its  parts,  was  the  greatest  triumph  the  artist  had  yet  achieved ;  and 
although  in  two  or  three  later  productions  he  may  have  equalled,  he  certainly 
never  surpassed  it  in  fidelity  to  nature  and  poetical  feeling :  the  masterly 
treatment  of  the  sea,  yet  chafing  under  the  effects  of  the  storm  that  has 
passed  over  it,  is,  perhaps,  the  most  striking  passage  in  the  picture. 

Of  three  pictures  exhibited  in  1845,  "The  Mole  at  Ancona,  with  Trajan's 
Arch  ;  "  "  Dutch  Boats  running  into  Saardam,  Amsterdam  in  the  distance  ;  " 
and  the  "  Action  and  Capture  of  the  Spanish  frigate  El  Gaiiio,  by  the 
English  sloop  Speedy,  commanded  by  the  then  Lord  Cochrane,  now  Earl  of 
Dundonald," — we  can  only  just  refer  to  the  last,  as  being  one  of  the  few 
sea-fights  which  the  painter  has  given  us  :  he  seems  to  have  caught,  in  his 
representation  of  the  action,  no  little  amount  of  the  spirit  which  the  gallant 
Cochrane  showed  in  the  capture  of  his  comparatively  gigantic  adversary. 

Amongst  the  five  pictures  sent  to  the  Academy  in  1849  were  "Tilbury 
Fort — Wind  against  Tide,"  painted  for  Mr.  R.  Stephenson,  M.P.,  engraved 
by  the  Art  Union  of  London,  and  Introduced  as  one  of  our  illustrations; 
"Lugano,  Switzerland,"  a  lake  scene  of  exquisite  beauty  and  finish; 
"  Salvator  Rosa's  Studio,"  a  wild,  rocky  composition,  most  true  to  nature; 


46  BRITISH    P A  IiXTERS. 

"  Lago  Maggiore;"    "Near  Miori,  Gulf  of  Salerno;"    and  a  home  scene, 
"  The  Reculvers  by  Moonlight." 

"The  Battle  of  Roveredo "  is  one  of  the  four  pictures  exhibited  by 
Stanfield  in  1851  :  it  was  painted  for  J.  Astley,  Esq.  The  engagement  was 
fought  in  September,  1796,  by  the  French,  under  Massena  and  Augereau, 
and  the  combined  forces  of  Russia  and  Austria  under  Davidowich,  who 
guarded  the  Tyrol  with  a  force  of  forty  thousand  men.  The  point  of  the 
picture  is  the  passage  of  the  French  troops  over  the  Adige;  but  the  whole 
composition,  which  covers  a  large  canvas,  is  full  of  material  skilfully  disposed 
as  to  pictorial  effect,  while  every  object  is  worked  up  to  the  closest  imitation 
of  nature. 

In  1853  only  two  pictures  appeared  in  his  name;  one  of  these,  however, 
"The  Victory,  with  the  dead  body  of  Nelson,  towed  into  Gibraltar,"  was 
among  the  "  stars  "  of  the  exhibition  ;  the  other,  "  An  Affray  in  the  Pyrenees 
with  Contrabandistas,"  is  a  spirited  and  powerfully  expressed  work,  but  painted 
with  less  attention  to  finish  than  we  ordinarily  see  in  Stanfield' s  pictures. 

Four  pictures  were  exhibited  in  1854,  one  of  them  being  "The  Last  of 
the  Crew," — a  castaway  sailor  seated  on  a  rock  against  which  his  small  vessel 
has  been  wrecked — the  composition  tells  the  tale  with  touching  pathos. 
"  Ilfracombe,  Devon,"  "Dutch  Boats  entering  Harbour,  Zuyder  Zee,"  and 
the  "Siege  of  Sebastian,"  the  companion  picture  to  "The  Victory,'"  both 
painted  for  Sir  M.  Peto,  were  in  the  Academy  in  1855.  His  last  few  years 
did  not  produce  any  work  that  can  fairly  be  compared  with  those  we  have  just 
named,  although  the  popularity  of  his  pictures  has  never  been  interrupted, 
even  to  the  present  time. 

We  have  been  careful  to  make  our  two  examples  of  Stanfield's  work  both 
sea-pieces.  Mr.  Ruskin  says,  "  One  work  of  Stanfield's  presents  us  with  as 
much  concentrated  knowledge  of  sea  and  sky  as,  diluted,  would  have  lasted 
any  one  of  the  old  masters  his  life." 

This  eminent  artist  was  called  away  on  the  i8th  of  May,  1867.  Asa 
marine  painter  he  has  been  unrivalled,  and  great  was  the  blank  he  left  in 
this  branch  of  Art. 


<  :5 

^  1 

<  -s 
^  1? 


l."^'''-^" 


CHAPTER  II. 

ARTISTS    BORN     I  800 182O. 

We  believe  it  is  too  much  the  practice  to  unfairly  criticize  and  condemn 
a  painter  simply  because  his  works  are  not  fashioned  according  to  our  taste 
or  in  exact  harmony  with  our  own  feelings,  forgetful  that  to  others,  as  well 
capable  as  ourselves  of  coming  to  a  right  decision,  they  may  embody  all 
that   is  excellent ;    and  when  we  do  so,  how  great  injustice  is  committed  ! 
Another    ground    on  which    this   superstructure  of    erroneous  judgment   is 
raised  is,  that  hastily  rejecting,  at  a  glance,  perhaps,  what  is  represented, 
we  take  no  trouble  to  ascertain  what  are  its  merits ;    we  give  to  it  neither 
close  examination   nor  patient    study ;    we   are   unwilling   to  recognise  and 
accept  the  spirit  which  created  and  formed  it,  and  consign  to  neglect,  or, 
worse   perhaps,  publicly  condemn,   a  work   of  genius,   merely  because  we 
chance  to   have  an    "unwholesome  preference"   for  some  other.     Suppose 
such  a  principle  of  feeling  and  action  were  transferred  from   the  world  of 
Art  to  that  of  Nature,  we  then  should  have  one  man  arraigning  the  wisdom 
of  Providence  because  the  sky  is  not  always  blue,  and  another  because  the 
sunshine  is  frequently  dimmed  by  "fleecy  clouds;  "   one  because  the  surface 
of  the   earth   is    not  an    unvarying   extent    of    gentle    slopes    and    verdant 
meadows ;    another  because    it  does  not   exhibit  a  continued  succession   of 
lofty  mountains  and  rugged  precipices.     The  proof  of  true  taste  and  a  right 
and  kindly  spirit  lies  in  the  desire  and  ability  to  discover  beauty  or  excel- 
lence under  every  guise,  without  prejudice  or  undue  partiality.     The  first 
effort   of  the  critic  should    be  directed  to  the    divesting   himself  of  every 
impediment  that   may  hinder  his  arrival  at  a  just,   reasonable,  and   correct 
conclusion. 

Again,  we  should  accept  the  artist  for  what  he  is,  and  not  repudiate  him 
for  what  he  is  not,  nor  pretends  to  be  :  the  charlatan,  who  assumes  a  posi- 
tion for  which  every  one  sees  him  to  be  disqualified,  is  a  fair  mark  for  popular 
indignation  ;  but  the  man  who  so  knows  himself  as  to  keep  within  his  own 


48  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

proper  limits,  and  to  ask  from  the  public  sympathy  and  attention  nothing 
more  than  what  he  is  entitled  to,  demands  and  gains  the  respect  due  to  him. 

Mr.  Stone  is  one  among  several  painters  we  could  name  who  have  been 
the  subjects  of  much  unfair  criticism ;  his  merits  are  too  generally  over- 
looked in  the  sweeping  condemnation  pronounced  on  the  "sentimentality" 
of  very  many  of  his  pictures.  No  one  would  declare  these  works  to  be 
significant  of  great  genius ;  we  confess  to  set  but  little  value  on  them  as 
productions  of  an  enlarged  and  intellectual  mind,  but  still  we  are  not  insen- 
sible to  many  excellences  which  they  undoubtedly  are  privileged  to  claim. 

Frank  Stone,  one  of  the  most  graceful  of  English  genre  painters,  is  one 
of  those  artists  whose  early  years  and  early  efforts  are  involved  in  much 
obscurity.  We  do  not  know  more  of  him  than  that  he  was  born  at  Man- 
chester in  1800,  and  that  he  did  not  turn  to  Art  as  a  profession  until  the 
beginning  of  his  twenty-sixth  year.  In  1832  he  became  a  member  of  the 
Old  Water  Colour  Society,  and  for  some  years  his  attention  was  almost  wholly 
given  to  work  of  that  class.  He  made  his  debut  as  a  portrait  painter  by 
sending  to  the  Royal  Academy  in  1837  two  portraits,  one  of  which  was  the 
"Lady  Seymour."  In  1838  he  contributed  a  "Study,"  and  in  1839  three 
portraits — one  of  them  "  Lord  Goderich,"  and  another  a  portrait  of  the 
"Hon.  Mrs.  Blackwood."  It  would  therefore  seem  that  he  brought  with 
him  to  London  some  good  introductions,  which  his  talent  enabled  him  to 
turn  to  a  profitable  account,  for  a  time  at  least.  In  1840  he  contributed  to 
the  British  Institution  a  graceful  little  picture  of  a  young  girl,  under  the 
name  of  "Louise."  Having,  it  may  be  presumed,  sufficiently  tested  his 
powers  in  portraiture,  he  now  stood  forth  on  a  wider  field  of  action,  and  sent 
to  the  Academy  in  the  same  year  a  "  Scene  from  the  Legend  of  Montrose  " 
— the  passage  which  describes  Annot  Lyle,  like  David  laying  with  his  harp 
the  evil  spirit  of  Saul,  soothing  the  fiery  temper  of  Allan  M'Aulay  by  her 
song,  in  the  presence  of  the  Earl  of  Montelth.  The  picture  was  an  earnest 
of  a  talent  which,  had  it  not  shortly  afterwards  been  diverted  into  another 
and  far  lower  channel,  would,  in  our  opinion,  have  placed  the  artist  in  a 
more  elevated  position  than  he  ever  afterwards  attained.  In  1841  he  exhi- 
bited at  the  British  Institution  another  picture,  a  scene  from  the  poetic 
romance  of  "Philip  van  Artevelde,"  wherein  a  youthful  husband,  "  ow'r 
young  to  marry  yet,"  amuses  himself  with  a  hawk,  while  his  neglected  bride 
stands  sorrowfully  watching  him.     To  the  Academy  Exhibition  of  the  same 


ft; 


Q    I 


FRANK    STONE.  4.9 

year  he  sent  another  most  graceful  composition — "  The  Stolen  Interview  of 
Charles,  when  Prince  of  Wales,  with  the  Infanta  of  Spain." 

In  1842  Mr.  Stone  commenced  the  series  of  "love-pictures,"  which, 
however  popular  they  have  been  made  by  the  engraver's  art — so  popular,  or 
at  least  so  common,  as  to  be  seen  here,  there,  and  everywhere,  wherever  a 
print-shop  of  any  kind  exists — were,  unhappily,  the  means  of  turning  his 
thoughts  too  often  in  a  direction  that  certainly  did  not  prove  the  high  road 
to  a  good  and  lasting  reputation.  The  pictures  to  which  we  refer  possessed 
that  peculiar  attractiveness  which  was  almost  sure  to  command  a  large 
amount  of  admiration  from  those  who  are  readily  pleased  with  pretty  faces, 
elegant  figures,  and  a  certain  kind  of  sentiment  that  is  patent  to  the  most 
casual  and  careless  observer.  But  such  compositions  never  rise  above 
mediocrity,  however  well  they  are  put  on  the  canvas — and  undoubtedly 
Stone  presented  them  in  a  manner  which  few  of  his  contemporaries  could 
excel,  regarding  them  merely  as  examples  of  very  careful  and  brilliant 
painting. 

The  first  of  this  class  of  pictures  was  exhibited  at  the  British  Institution, 
in  1842,  under  the  title  of  "  The  Bashful  Lover  and  the  Maiden  Coy  ;  "  it  was 
followed  the  same  year  by  another  at  the  Royal  Academy,  "Admonition," — 
a  work  perhaps  to  which  less  exception  might  be  taken  than  to  some  others, 
yet  partaking  of  their  character  :  it  represents  two  young  girls,  one  of  whom 
holds  a  love-letter,  it  is  presumed,  in  her  hand,  while  the  elder  is  venturing  to 
give  her  sister  a  lecture  upon  the  impropriety  of  receiving  such  a  communica- 
tion. But  a  work  of  a  far  higher  order  than  any  we  have  yet  referred  to  was 
hung  at  the  same  time,  "A  Scene  from  Hamlet''' — Ophelia  singing  before 
the  queen  as  the  king  enters  ;  a  composition  that  may  lay  claim  to  some  of 
the  best  characteristics  of  good  historical  painting. 

In  the  Royal  Academy  Exhibition  of  1847  appeared  the  two  pictures, 
"The  Impending  Mate,"  and  "Mated."  In  the  former  of  these  the  lovers 
are  busy  over  a  game  of  chess — neither  the  young  man  nor  his  pieces  have 
many  more  moves  to  play ;  the  latter  is  here  introduced  as,  perhaps,  the  most 
agreeable  of  the  artist's  compositions  of  this  class.  It  is  also  nearly  the  last 
of  them;  in  1848  he  struck  out  a  new  line  by  exhibiting  at  the  Academy 
"  Christ  and  the  Sisters  of  Bethany." 

In  1850  we  find  Stone  illustrating  Shakespeare.  This,  we  need  hardly  say, 
he  was  not  fully  competent  to  do,  though  there  is  much  in  the  design  and 

n 


50  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

more  in  the  execution  of  these  pictures  that  will  give  pleasure  or  instruction. 
His  first  essay  was  "  A  Scene  from  The  Taiipcsi'" — Miranda  expressing  her 
admiration  of  Ferdinand.  Next  year  he  sent  to  the  Academy  the  picture 
here  engraved,  "  Bassanio  receiving  the  Letter  announcing  Antonio's  Losses 
and  Perils,"  from  The  Ilfeirhaiif  of  Venice,  one  of  the  most  ambitious 
works  attempted  by  the  painter,  and  certainly  not  the  least  successful ;  the 
composition  is  good,  the  figures  are  well  grouped,  and  the  heads  carefully 
studied  with  respect  to  character,  while  the  whole  is  painted  with  a  brilliant 
and  delicate  pencil.  In  the  autumn  of  this  year  Stone  was  elected  Associate 
of  the  Academy. 

Stimulated,  perhaps,  by  the  honour  paid  him  by  the  Academy,  he  sent  to 
its  exhibition  in  the  following  year  four  pictures,  the  largest  number  he  ever 
contributed  :  —  "  A  Scene  from  Cymbeli)ic^^  a  small  canvas,  presenting  half- 
length  figures  of  Pisanio  and  Imogen  ;  a  "  Country  Girl ;  "  "At  the  Opera," 
a  title  significant  of  the  subject ;  and  a  "  Portrait  of  Dr.  Hooker,"  surrounded 
by  his  native  collectors,  examining  plants  in  the  rhododendra  region  of  the 
Himalaya  Mountains, — a  subject  not  of  the  highest  pictorial  interest,  but 
treated  with  considerable  skill  and  judgment.  His  contributions  in  1853  were 
— "A  Nile  Flower,"  a  charming  study  of  an  Eastern  maiden  ;  "  Now  I'll  tell 
you  what  we'll  do,"  an  affected  title  given  to  a  group  of  country  girls  in  a 
meadow;  and  "  The  Master  is  come,"  illustrating  a  passage  in  the  history  of 
Martha  and  Mary,  as  described  by  the  Evangelist  St.  John  :  the  two  females 
only  are  introduced,  and  they  are  described  with  much  power  and  truth. 

In  1856  Stone  was  absent  from  the  walls  of  the  Academy;  and  in  1857  he 
sent  one  picture  only.  Two  years  later  he  was  taken  off  suddenly,  on  the 
1 8th  of  November,  by  an  affection  of  the  heart.  There  is  little  doubt  that, 
had  his  life  been  spared  a  few  years  longer,  though  not  a  young  man,  we 
should  have  seen  from  his  pencil  works  which  would  have  justly  raised  him  in 
the  esteem  of  the  Art-critic. 

The  characteristics  of  Stone's  productions  may  be  briefly  summed  up  : 
his  strength  lay  in  his  delineation  of  the  female  figure,  where  beauty  of 
expression  and  delicacy  of  texture  are  sought  after.  He  rarely  attempted 
elaborate  compositions,  aware,  probably,  of  his  weakness  in  the  art  of 
grouping  masses,  either  as  principals  or  accessories.  His  colouring  was 
generally  truthful  and  always  brilliant,  and  his  execution  careful,  even  to  a 
high  degree  of  finish  in  the  minutest  details  of  his  subjects.     His  talents  will 


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always  command  respect,  though  we  do  not  anticipate  they  will   ever  cause 
him  to  be  classed  with  the  brightest  ornaments  of  the  British  School. 


Thomas  Webster,  R.A.,  was  born  on  the  20th  of  March,  1800,  in 
Ranelagh  Street,  Pimlico  :  his  father,  being  attached  to  the  household  of 
George  III.,  took  his  child  in  its  infancy  to  Windsor,  where  he  remained  till 
the  death  of  the  venerable  monarch.  Young  Webster  was  educated  in  the 
choir  of  the  Chapel  Royal,  St.  James's,  his  father  being  desirous  of  making  a 
chorister  of  him  :  but  like  Hoppner,  who  was  in  the  choir  of  the  Chapel  Royal, 
and  Callcott  in  that  of  Westminster  Abbey,  Webster  preferred  the  art  of 
painting  to  the  practice  of  music.  We  know  not  what  the  world  has  lost  as  a 
vocalist  by  the  preference,  but  we  are  sure  it  has  thereby  gained  an  original 
and  most  excellent  painter. 

Whether,  as  a  boy,  Mr.  Webster  took  more  delight  in  "Going  into 
School,"  or  in  "Coming  out  of  School;"  whether  he  stood  in  awe  of  the 
Dominie's  "Frown,"  and  laughed  at  his  "Joke;"  whether  he  was  one  of 
the  party  of  "  Birdcatchers,"  joined  in  the  "Gunpowder  Plot,"  and  was  the 
lucky  "  Boy  who  had  many  Friends" — of  these  and  other  matters  of  like 
import  we  are  in  profound  ignorance,  and  must  leave  our  readers  in  the  same 
condition  ;  but  we  will  venture  to  assert  that  in  all  the  sports  he  has  so  aptly 
represented  on  his  canvases,  he  played  his  part,  and  from  them  stored  his 
youthful  mind  with  recollections  that  have  answered  the  purpose  of  his  after 
life  better  than  the  "  Commentaries"  of  Caesar,  if  he  ever  read  them,  or  the 
distractions  of  duodecimals  and  algebraic  problems,  if  he  ever  worked  them 
out  on  his  oak-framed  slate. 

In  1820  he  entered  the  Royal  Academy  as  a  student,  and  in  1825 
obtained  the  first  medal  in  the  School  of  Painting.  Having,  in  1825,  been 
fortunate  in  painting  a  little  picture  entitled  "  Rebels  shooting  a  Prisoner," 
exhibited  at  Suffolk  Street,  it  at  once  brought  him  into  notice,  so  that  the 
difficulties  which  many  young  painters  find  in  early  life,  and  their  consequent 
privations,  were  alike  unfelt  by  him  :  these  difficulties  and  privations  are 
arduous  and  painful  enough  to  check  all  except  the  most  ardent  spirits,  but 
when  once  surmounted,  he  who  has  overcome  regards  them  from  his  vantage- 
ground  with  unqualified  satisfaction. 

The  first  of  his  exhibited  pictures  of  which  we  possess  any  record,  except 


SJ  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

that  just  mentioned,  was  one  sent  to  the  Royal  Academy  in  1827,  a  portrait- 
picture,  we  presume,  the  "Children  of  T.  Drane,  Esq.;"  the  next  year  he 
contributed  the  "Gunpowder  Plot"  to  the  Academy,  and  in  1829,  "The 
Prisoner,"  and  "A  Forag^ing  Party  roused,"  to  the  British  Institution.  Of 
these  and  earlier  works  which  Mr.  Webster  forwarded  to  our  public  galleries, 
we  can  only  give  the  titles  ;  our  space  does  not  admit  of  detailed  comment. 
For  the  next  ten  years  we  find  him  exhibiting  one  or  two  pictures  annually, 
either  at  the  British  Institution  or  at  the  Academy,  the  year  1834  only 
excepted. 

All  this  time  the  artist  was  gradually  winning  his  way  to  public  favour  ; 
every  class  saw  in  his  humorous  compositions  what  could  not  fail  to  amuse, 
and  therefore  to  please  ;  for  his  humour,  like  that  of  all  Dickens's  droll  fellows, 
is  never  coarse  ;  it  never  touches  caricature.  His  characters  are  invariably 
true  to  nature,  though  in  her  most  ludicrous  aspect— nature  which  both  old 
and  young  can  understand  and  appreciate. 

At  the  period  of  which  we  are  writing,  it  was  a  common  practice  with 
artists — especially  such  as  had  achieved  a  reputation — to  send  to  the  British 
Institution  only  pictures  which  had  been  previously  exhibited  at  the  Academy, 
but  we  do  not  find  that  Mr.  Webster  followed  this  plan  :  he  contributed  to 
this  society,  in  1839,  two  pictures — one  "The  Rat-Trap,"  boys  inspecting  its 
contents;  the  other  called  "Anticipation,"  a  baker's  lad  bringing  home  a 
pie,  for  which  a  hungry-looking  boy  waits  anxiously  at  the  door  of  his  cottage 
home,  standing  "like  a  greyhound  in  the  slip,"  with  a  cloth  tucked  up  under 
his  chin,  a  spoon  in  his  hand,  his  mouth  half-open  in  "anticipation  "  of  the 
savoury  plateful.  His  Academy  picture  of  this  year,  "Football,"  was 
considered  the  best  he  had  yet  painted  ;  a  group  of  village  urchins  are  in  the 
full  excitement  of  the  game,  which  they  follow  up  in  the  most  vigorous 
manner.  Of  course  Mr.  Webster  must  show  some  "  fun  "  among  the  players  ; 
consequently,  a  boy  has  received  a  kick,  and  in  his  agony  seizes  one  of  his 
companions  by  the  hair ;  another  boy  has  had  his  cap  pressed  over  his  eyes 
by  some  mischief-lovers  ;  while  another,  who  is  kneeling  in  the  foreground  of 
the  composition,  rubs  himself  to  relieve  the  pain  occasioned  by  a  chance  blow 
given  in  the  vielk.  The  picture  is  full  of  animation,  the  figures  are  most 
skilfully  grouped,  and  very  carefully  finished. 

In  the  following  year,  1841,  the  name  of  Mr.  Webster  appears  in  the 
list  of  Associates  of  the  Royal  Academy,  an  honour  to  which  he  had  proved 


•  n.  PEXSEROSO. 

from  a  Piiinting  by  Tuoinas  IVcbiUr,  R.A. 


If  F  n  s  T  /■:  R. 


S3 


a  just  claim  ;  he  was  elected  with  Sir  Charles  Barry  and  Mr.  Redgrave. 
He  exhibited  three  pictures  this  year,  and  they  were  three  which  we  think  he 
has  never  surpassed.  Two  of  them,  "The  Smile"  and  "The  Frown,"  are 
well  known  from  the  engravings  published  by  the  "  Art  Union  of  London," 
while  there  must  be  few  people  whose  attention  has  not  been  at  some  time  or 
other  drawn  to  an  engraving  of  "  The  Boy  with  many  Friends," — the 
schoolboy  with  his  half-opened  package  of  good  things  from  home,  surrounded 
by  his  schoolfellows  each  anxious  to  lend  knife,  corkscrew,  or  anything  else 
that  will  oblige  the  owner  of  the  untold  treasure. 

There  was  a  charming  little  picture  by  this  artist,  occupying  the  "  post  of. 
honour,"  as  the  position  over  the  fireplace  was  generally  considered,  in  the 
British  Institution  in  1842  ;  it  was  called  the  "  Wanderer,"  and  represented  a 
young  Italian  boy  with  a  box  of  white  mice,  which  he  is  showing  to  some 
children  at  the  door  of  their  cottage.  The  contrast  in  the  faces  of  "  The 
Wanderer,"  weary  and  exiled,  and  those  of  the  children  in  humbler  but 
comfortable  quarters  at  home,  is  very  happily  expressed  —  the  group  all 
sunshine  and  delight,  the  little  Italian  sorrowful  and  careworn. 

Mr.  Webster's  single  picture  of  the  year  1843,  we  will  venture  to  say, 
drew  forth  as  many  sighs  from  the  spectators  as  his  former  productions  had 
elicited  smiles  ;  it  portrayed  one  of  those  touching  incidents  which  show 
that  the  artist's  harp  is  not  always  tuned  to  merriment,  but  that  sometimes 
it  hangs  upon  the  willows  :  the  picture  is  called  "  Sickness  and  Health."  A 
young  girl  on  whose  features  the  death-warrant  is  set  is  seated  propped  up 
by  pillows  at  a  cottage  door ;  before  it  an  Italian  organ-grinder  is  playing 
his  instrument,  to  the  music  of  which  two  children,  j'ounger  than  the  poor 
invalid,  are  dancing :  all  the  characters  very  ably  sustain  the  intention  of  the 
artist,  and  are  full  of  interest. 

What  would  Mr.  Webster  have  done  for  subjects  for  his  pencil  had  there 
been  no  such  folk  in  the  world  as  incorrigible  boys,  idle  boys,  mischievous 
boys,  funny  boys,  &c.  ?  Yet  in  one  of  his  two  Academy  pictures  of  1844,  the 
artist  stepped  aside  from  his  usual  course  to  pay  a  tribute  of  filial  affection  to 
his  aged  parents  by  painting  their  portraits  to  commemorate  the  fiftieth 
anniversary  of  their  marriage;  the  aged  couple  are  seated  side  by  side.  The 
picture,  a  small  one,  is  a  gem  of  its  class.  In  the  following  year  Mr.  Webster 
was  elected  Ro)'al  Academician  ;  his  sole  contribution  to  the  exhibition  was 
"The  Dame's  School,"  now  in  the  Vernon  collection;  a  large  engraving  of 


5+  B  R  I  T I  S  H    P  A  I N  T  E  R  S. 

this  picture  has  been  published  by  Mr.  Hogarth,  and  a  small  one  appeared  in 
the  Art  Joiirnal  some  years  ago. 

An  important  and  most  amusing  picture  was  exhibited  by  Mr.  Webster  in 
1847  ;  it  was  suggested  by  a  description  in  one  of  the  tales  in  Washington 
Irving's  inimitable  "  Sketch-Book,"  where  Frank  Bracebridge  promises  to 
favour  his  friends  with  a  specimen  of  the  musical  achievement  of  his  cousin 
Simon  in  forming  a  "  Village  Choir,"  in  the  church  which  did  not  possess  an 
organ  ;  Simon,  for  this  purpose,  had  formed  a  choir  of  all  the  parish  vocalists 
and  instrumentalists,  selecting  "for  the  bass  all  the  deep  solemn  mouths,  and 
for  the  tenor  the  loud  ringing  mouths,  among  the  country  bumpkins."  In 
the  gallery  of  the  church,  therefore,  is  about  as  motley  an  assemblage  of 
choristers  as  can  well  be  imagined  :  the  leader  of  the  choir,  a  spare  figure 
in  an  ill-fitting  suit  of  rusty  black,  is  singing  most  lustily,  his  open  mouth 
discovering  the  loss  of  so  many  of  his  teeth  as  must  make  his  intonation  far 
from  distinct ;  to  the  right  and  left  of  the  leader  are  ranged  the  vocalists — 
anything  but  "sweet  singers  of  Israel,"  and  the  performers  on  bassoon, 
violoncello,  clarionet,  &c.,  each  of  whom  is  unquestionably  extracting  as 
much  "power"  from  his  instrument  as  lungs  and  a  strong  arm  can  respec- 
tively produce.  The  composition  is  full  of  humorous  incident,  carried  out 
with  the  careful  execution  which  has  always  distinguished  the  style  of  this 
painter. 

It  will  be  seen  that  we  have  laid  more  stress  on  the  artist's  earlier  works. 
Our  two  engravings  are  both  from,  pictures  painted  before  1840.  Since  the 
time  of  which  we  have  just  been  writing,  Mr.  Webster  has  constantly  con- 
tributed to  the  Royal  Academy.  Amongst  his  more  recent  works  we  may 
notice — we  have  not  space  for  more  than  the  titles — "Politicians,"  exhibited 
in  1869;  "Volunteers  at  Artillery  Practice,"  in  1871  ;  "An  Interested 
Adviser,"  in  1873;  "The  Wreck  Ashore,"  in  1874;  "Youth  and  Age,"  in 
1876;  "The  Letter,"  in  1877;  a  Portrait  of  Himself,  in  1878.  He  was 
placed  on  the  list  of  Honorary  Retired  Academicians  in  1877.  A  lifetime  of 
such  incessant  labour  may  seem  to  have  deserved  an  evening  of  calm  repose ; 
yet  such  is  his  fondness  for  Art  that  the  silver-haired  octogenarian  is  even 
now  working  in  his  quiet  retreat  at  Cranbrook,  using  to  the  utmost  the  talents 
intrusted  to  his  care.  Can  we  say  that  his  "pound"  has  not  produced  its 
ten  pounds  ? 

We  confess  a  strong    partiality  for  the  inimitable  works    of  this    most 


L  A  N  n  S  E  E  R.  55 

original  painter  ;  they  are  pictures  affording  real  pleasure  :  whether  we  regard 
their  masterly  execution  as  artistic  productions,  or  the  cheerful  and  amusing 
subjects  he  illustrates,  they  are  equally  most  acceptable. 


No  collection  of  British  Artists  would  be  complete  without,  at  least,  a 
passing  notice  of  Edwin  Landseer.  Famous  for  bright  originality  the  British 
school  no  doubt  is,  whether  we  bring  under  review  the  strides  it  has  made  in 
the  direction  of  perfect  landscapes,  or  in  the  direction  of  perfect  portraits  ; 
but  it  is  in  the  animal  paintings  of  the  great  artist  of  whom  we  are  now  to 
speak  that  its  originality  may  most  fairly  be  boasted.  Without  attempting 
to  point  out  by  means  of  definitions  what  is  high  Art  and  what  is  not,  we  may 
lay  stress  upon  one  fact :  of  his  branch  of  painting  Landseer  stands  out  the 
undisputed  head. 

It  is  a  great  question  whether  talents  such  as  his  could  find  their  fulfilment 
in  any  but  an  English-speaking  country.  Two  things  which  accompany  the 
English  language  all  over  the  world  are,  a  love  of  field  sports  and  a  love  of 
home  ;  it  is  the  strength  of  both  combined  which  attaches  us  to  the  horses, 
dogs,  and  deer,  which  speak  to  us  from  his  canvases.  Many  years  ago  a 
critic  did  not  hesitate  to  point  out,  that  under  other  conditions  the  future  of 
this  artist  might  have  been  very  different.  The  simple,  feeling  nature,  which 
was  able  to  portray  the  emotions  of  the  animal  creation  so  truly,  would  surely 
never  have  forced  its  way  in  the  world  unaided  by  the  careful  direction  of  a 
kind  father,  or  the  approbation  of  a  noble  patron.* 

Edwin  Landseer  was  born  in  London,  March  7,  1S02,  being  the  youngest 
son  of  John  Landseer,  A.R.A.,  an  engraver  of  some  eminence.  From  his 
earliest  years  he  displayed  a  love  for  his  own  special  branch  of  Art,  and  his 
tastes  were  very  wisely  fostered  by  his  father,  who  used  either  to  accompany 
him,  or  send  a  servant  with  him,  into  the  fields  round  the  house  or  on  to 
Hampstead  Heath  :  he  would  often  be  out  all  day  sketching  cows,  sheep, 
horses,  donkeys,  dogs,  or  any  other  animals  that  fell  in  his  way.  Curiously 
enough,  his  favourite  open-air  studio  at  Finchley  is  now  occupied  by  a  station 
on  the  North  London  Railway. 

Some  examples  of  his  very  early  works  may  now  be  seen  in  the  South 
Kensington  Museum,  some  of  the  sketches  there  being  supposed  to  belong  to 

*  Tlie  laic  Duke  of  Bedford. 


56  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

his  sixth  or  seventh  year.  At  the  age  of  fourteen  he  entered  the  schools  of  the 
Royal  Academy,  though  two  drawings  of  animals  had  been  exhibited  there  by 
him  in  the  preceding  year.  At  this  time,  too,  he  was  engaged  on  certain 
subjects  for  the  Sporting  Magazine,  which  were  engraved  by  his  brother, 
Thomas.  We  also  hear  of  his  carefully  studying  the  Elgin  Marbles,  then  at 
Burlington  House. 

In  1 815  Mr.  Landseer  took  his  three  sons  to  the  studio  of  B.  R.  Haydon  ; 
some  interesting  relics  of  their  connection  with  him  will  be  found  in  the 
Autobiography  of  that  unfortunate  artist ;  under  his  advice  Edwin  began 
dissecting  animals,  and  there  laid  the  foundation  of  that  accurate  knowledge 
of  all  their  parts  without  which  no  abilities,  however  striking,  can  hope  to 
produce  a  really  good  animal-painting. 

In  181 8  we  find  Landseer  exhibiting  at  the  Gallery  of  the  Society  of 
Painters  in  Oil  and  Water-Colours,  in  Spring  Gardens,  "  Fighting  Dogs 
getting  Wind,"  a  picture  which  attracted  much  notice  at  the  time,  and  which 
was  engraved  by  the  painter's  father.  In  1819  there  was  hung  at  the  British 
Institution  an  important  work,  "  Dogs  of  Mount  St.  Gothard  discovering  a 
Traveller  in  the  Snow;  "  this  was  in  the  possession  of  the  late  Mr.  Gillott,  of 
Birmingham,  and  at  the  sale  of  his  collection  realised  no  less  than  1,740 
guineas. 

Soon  after  this  the  death  of  a  lion  at  a  menagerie  in  London  gave 
the  artist  an  opportunity  of  studying  its  anatomy ;  this  event  was  followed 
by  the  production  of  several  such  pictures  as  "A  Lion  disturbed,"  "A 
Lion  prowling,"  &c.,  &c.  "  The  Larder  invaded,"  sent  to  the  British 
Institution  in  1822,  gained  from  the  Directors  their  prize  of  ^150.  The 
then  Duke  of  Bedford  appears  to  have  afforded  much  valuable  support  and 
patronage  at  this  period. 

Although  Landseer  had  taken  advantage  of  many  opportunities  to  study 
deer  and  their  surroundings  in  English  parks,  especially  at  Woburn,  he  did 
not  make  his  first  visit  to  the  Highlands  of  Scotland  until  1825  or  1826; 
this  was  indeed  a  red-letter  day  in  his  life.  The  immediate  result  of  this 
visit  was  "  The  Hunting  of  Chevy  Chace,"  exhibited  at  the  Royal  Academy 
in  1826,  and  now  hanging  at  Woburn  Abbey;  it  gained  for  its  painter 
admission  into  the  ranks  of  the  Associates  of  the  Ro5'al  Academy  at  the 
earliest  age,  twenty-four,  when  a  candidate  for  honours  can  be  admitted. 

"An  Illicit  Whisky  Still  in   the  Highlands"   appeared  in    1829;   it  was 


L  A  N  D  S  E  E  R.  57 

purchased  by  the  late  Duke  of  Wellington.  The  scene  is  laid  in  a  High- 
land hut,  and  a  sportsman,  leaning  on  the  deer  he  has  just  brought  in,  is 
giving  his  opinion  of  the  spirit  to  an  anxious-looking  old  woman.  The 
various  materials  for  distilling  are  scattered  about,  nor  must  we  omit  to 
mention  the  poorly-clad  young  girl  who  looks  sadly  on  the  busy  group. 
Both  the  composition  and  the  execution  of  the  picture  are  admirable.  In 
1 83 1  Landseer,  now  in  the  mid-stream  of  his  career,  became  a  Royal 
Academician;  two  years  afterwards,  amongst  other  pictures,  "Jack  in 
Office"  appeared  at  the  Academy;  and  it  will  not  be  right  to  leave 
unnoticed  "  Harvest  in  the  Highlands,"  which  also  belongs  to  this  date.  Of 
this,  the  landscape  was  the  work  of  Callcott,  and  the  animals,  &c.,  were 
drawn  in  by  Landseer.  The  owner  of  this  picture  on  several  occasions 
refused  offers  of  large  sums  for  the  right  of  engraving  it,  but  at  length 
granted  that  privilege  to  a  society  for  distributing  the  knowledge  of  works 
of  Art. 

Of  all  pictures,  ancient  or  modern,  there  is  none  so  widely  known 
by  means  of  engravings  as  "  Bolton  Abbey  in  the  Olden  Time."  This 
appeared  in  1834.  The  original  belongs  to  the  Duke  of  Devonshire,  on 
whose  property  the  ruins  of  the  old  abbey  stand. 

Should  any  of  our  readers  be  by  chance  desirous  of  learning  more  about 
this  great  artist,  we  must  refer  them  to  the  numerous  collections  of  engrav- 
ings from  his  pictures  which  have  appeared  both  in  England  and  America; 
in  some  of  these  will  be  found  valuable  criticisms  on  the  pictures  themselves, 
in  others  many  interesting  details  of  the  artist's  life.  In  this  short  notice 
we  are  merely  giving  a  general  outline  of  his  history,  taking  what  notice 
we  can  of  his  principal  works.  Owing  to  the  munificent  bequests  of  Mr. 
Sheepshanks,  Mr.  Vernon,  and  Mr.  Jacob  Bell,  a  very  large  number  of  the 
artist's  best  pieces  are  now  the  property  of  the  nation,  and  are  to  be  found 
at  the  South  Kensington  Museum  or  in  the  National  Gallery ;  this  collection 
has  already  been  of  the  greatest  use  to  increasing  numbers  of  Art-students. 

"The  Twa  Dogs"  was  painted  in  1822,  and  is  to  be  found  in  the 
Sheepshanks  collection:  so  also  is  "The  Old  Shepherd's  Chief  Mourner," 
one  of  the  eight  contributions  to  the  Academy  in  1837.  "Dignity  and 
Impudence"  appeared  at  the  British  Institution  in  1839. 

In  1 84 1  Landseer  contributed  to  none  of  the  exhibitions,  an  attack  of 
illness  obliging  him  to  seek  rest  in  travel.     He  resided  for  some  time  at 

I 


S8  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Vienna,  returning  to  England  at  the  close  of  the  year.  We  have  omitted 
to  speak  of  "High  Life"  and  "Low  Life;"  these  omnipresent  studies 
belong  to  1831,  and  are  in  the  Vernon  Collection.  The  "Friend  in 
Suspense,"  too,  was  exhibited  at  the  British  Listitution  in  1834,  and  is  to 
be  found  among  the  Sheepshanks  pictures. 

Three  very  notable  works  were  exhibited  at  the  Royal  Academy  in  1846, 
viz.  "Time  of  Peace,"  "  Time  of  War,"  and  "  The  Stag  at  Bay;  "  they  have 
all  been  too  much  before  the  public  to  need  description,  but  we  may  remark 
that  the  artist  is  said  to  have  received  nearly  ;;/"6, 000  for  them. 

In  1850  Landseer  received  the  honour  of  knighthood;  he  had  for  some 
time  been  honoured  by  the  personal  notice  of  the  Queen  and  the  Prince 
Consort.  His  simple,  genial  disposition  seems  to  have  found  favour  with 
them,  and  his  almost  passionate  interest  in  Highland  field  sports  was  fully 
shared  by  Prince  Albert. 

Towards  the  end  of  1865  died  Sir  C.  L.  Eastlake,  leaving  vacant  the 
President's  chair  in  the  Royal  Academy.  The  office  was  offered  to  Landseer, 
and  he,  we  believe,  actually  held  the  post  for  a  week.  His  speedy  resignation 
was  caused  by  the  first  taste  of  the  onerous  duties  of  the  position. 

A  few  words  about  the  much  vexed  question  of  the  lions  in  Trafalgar  Square. 
The  question  of  placing  a  public  monument  to  Nelson  in  that  part  of  London 
was  first  agitated  in  1838.  The  statue  of  Nelson  by  E.  Baily,  and  Mr.  Rail- 
ton's  design  for  the  column,  were  early  fixed  upon;  but  it  was  not  till  1858 
that  the  public  became  aware  that  the  work  of  designing  the  lions  had  been 
intrusted  to  Sir  Edwin  Landseer.  Considerable  surprise  was  manifested  at 
the  great  artist  thus  turning  sculptor,  and  this  turned  to  something  like 
indignation  as  years  rolled  on  and  no  lions  appeared.  All  this  while, 
however,  Landseer  had  been  engaged  in  painstaking  study  of  the  monarchs 
of  the  brute  creation.  The  result  of  his  work  appeared  in  1867  ;  and  never 
has  a  heavier  storm  of  unjust  criticism  fallen.  We  have  heard,  amongst 
other  cases,  of  a  surgeon  of  some  standing  who  took  serious  objection  to 
certain  details,  alleging  ignorance  of  the  anatomy  of  the  animal ;  however, 
on  being  challenged  to  prove  his  statements,  the  surgeon  made  some  further 
researches  in  the  leonine  anatomy,  and  was  at  once  led  to  acknowledge  that 
he  had  been  in  error. 

The  later  years  of  Landseer' s  life  were  clouded  by  ill-health  :  he  was 
subject   to  fits  of  extreme  nervous  depression.     After  some  days'  illness  he 


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r  A  r  L  E  R.  59 

departed  this  life  October  2nd,  1873.     A  fortniglit  later  the  most  popular  of 
all  English  painters  was  buried  in  the  crypt  of  St.  Paul's. 

Of  our  two  engravings,  "  The  Angler's  Guard"  belongs  to  the  artist's 
twenty-third  year ;  at  this  time  he  was  much  on  the  look-out  for  fresh  or 
curious  subjects  for  his  pencil.  The  Italian  greyhound  must  have  cost  him  some 
thought,  for,  in  itself  more  difficult  to  draw  than  many  others  of  its  race,  the 
difficulty  of  assigning  it  a  suitable  place  in  a  group  is  great.  "  The  Alarm  " 
belongs  to  a  much  later  period  ;  it  is  just  a  sketch  from  memory  of  a  scene  he 
must  have  witnessed  in  the  Highlands. 


Frederick  Tayler  was  born  at  Barham  Wood,  Hertfordshire,  on  April 
30th,  1804,  and  is  the  sixth  son  of  the  late  Archdale  Wilson  Tayler,  Esq.,  of 
the  same  place :  his  father  was  a  sportsman,  and  the  sight  of  the  dogs  and 
guns,  which  formed  a  part  of  the  household  deities  at  home,  probably  laid,  in 
early  life,  the   foundation    of  that   taste    for  animal  painting   and  sporting 
incidents  which  have  formed  the  most  prolific  and  the  favourite  subjects  of  his 
pencil.     His  parents,  however,  had  no  intention  to  make  an  artist  of  him,  but 
proposed  to  educate  him  for  the  Church.     With  this  view,  the  youth,  after 
leaving  school,  was  placed  under  a  private  tutor ;  but  the  love  of  pictures 
and  painting  had  obtained  such  complete  mastery  over  his   mind    that  the 
clerical  project  was  abandoned,  and  the  would-be  artist  permitted  to  follow 
his  inclination.     By  the  recommendation  of  Northcote — then  a  very  old  man 
— young  Tayler  was  placed  at  the  Art-school  of  Mr.  Sass,  now  Mr.  Gary's,  in 
Bloomsbury  Street ;    an  establishment  at  which   not  a  few  artists  who  have 
risen  to  distinction  have  received  such  instruction  as  has  conduced  to  their 
future  fame.     While  attending  the  classes  under  Mr.  Sass,  he  also  entered  as 
probationer  at  the  Royal  Academy ;  but  he  had  not  been  thus  occupied  very 
long,  when  he  was  induced  to  join  his  brother,  then  Ghaplain  to  the  British 
Embassy  at  Florence,  by  a  desire  to  visit  Italy  and  study  from  the  noble 
collections  of  works  of  Art  there.     On  returning,  he  determined  to  stop  a 
short  time  in   Paris  for  study  and   improvement ;    but  meeting  with    every 
advantage  and  encouragement  there  in   the  profession  he  had  adopted,  he 
resolved  to  remain.     The  sight  of  the  works  of  Gericault,  the  distinguished 
French  painter,  particularly  of  subjects  in  which  the  horse  figures  prominently, 
inspired  the  young  Englishman  with  ardent  emulation.     Gericault  died  about 


6o  BRITISH    PAIN  TE  R  S. 

the  time  when  Mr.  Tayler  arrived  in  Paris,  and  his  sketches  and  unfinished 
pictures  were  sold  by  auction  not  very  long  after  his  death  :  Mr.  Tayler  had, 
therefore,  a  favourable  opportunity  of  examining  them.  He  began  to  work 
incessantly  in  the  study  of  the  horse,  purchased  heads  and  limbs  of  the 
animal,  dissected  them,  and  made  careful  drawings  of  the  dissections,  so  as  to 
obtain  a  thorough  knowledge  of  its  anatomy.  In  Paris  he  met  with  the 
greatest  kindness,  and  received  most  valuable  assistance  from  Paul  Dela- 
Roche,  whose  studio  was  his  daily  resort,  and  where  he  found  the  most  ready 
help,  the  best  professional  advice,  and  was  at  all  times  permitted  to  avail 
himself  of  the  privilege  of  drawing  from  the  models  the  great  French  painter 
had  accumulated  in  his  studio  for  his  own  pictures.  Here,  also,  he  became 
the  intimate  friend  and  associate  of  Bonington,  and  we  can  well  believe  that 
the  companionship  of  an  artist  so  rarely  endowed  as  was  Bonington  was  not 
lost  upon  his  friend.  After  a  residence  of  nearly  four  years  in  Paris,  Mr. 
Tayler  returned  to  England,  in  1828,  with  Prout,  and  soon  after  his  arrival 
was  elected  an  associate  exhibitor  of  the  Water-Colour  Society.  From 
that  time  to  the  present,  his  favourite  subjects  have  been  taken  chiefly  from 
the  glens  and  mountains  of  the  Highlands  of  Scotland,  over  a  great  part  of 
which  he  has  travelled  with  his  knapsack  on  his  back,  his  sketch-book  in  his 
hand,  and  a  friend  by  his  side  ;  and  still  in  the  herds  of  wild  deer,  the  shaggy 
ponies,  the  goats  and  sheep,  the  dogs  and  game  of  that  romantic  land,  he 
finds  his  greatest  delight  and  his  most  profitable  occupation. 

On  the  opening  of  the  Palais  des  Beaux  Arts,  at  the  great  French  Expo- 
sition in  1855,  Mr.  Tayler  was  accredited  to  Paris  as  one  of  the  four  jurors  of 
painting  for  England,  and  had  the  mortification  to  find  how  few  medals  the 
jurors  were  disposed  to  award  to  his  countrymen  in  proportion  to  the  great 
mass  of  British  talent  there  represented :  the  number  assigned  them  was 
altogether  inadequate  to  the  deserts  of  the  exhibitors,  and,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  a  large  body  of  artists  well  deserving  of  honours  felt  keenly  the 
disappointment.  For  his  duties  on  this  occasion  the  Emperor  of  the  French 
conferred  on  him  the  Cross  of  the  Legion  of  Honour. 

When  J.  F.  Lewis  resigned  the  office  of  President  of  the  Water-Colour 
Society,  Mr.  Tayler  was  unanimously  elected  to  succeed  him  ;  a  better  choice 
out  of  their  united  body  the  members  could  not  have  made. 

The  earliest  of  his  works  in  our  remembrance  is  one  exhibited  in  1839, 
"  King  Charles  the  First  conveyed  a  Prisoner  to  Hornby  House,"  a  remark- 


TA  FL  E  R.  61 

ably  clever  composition,  well  studied,  and  most  effective  in  the  arrangement 
of  the  figures,  but,  for  a  picture  of  such  size  and  character,  too  sketchy  in 
manner,  and  consequently  weak ;  it  looked  as  if  it  had  been  sent  in  to  the 
gallery  in  an  unfinished  state. 

A  scene  from  "  The  Vicar  of  Wakefield,"  which  Mr.  Tayler  named  "  Too 
late  for  Church,"  was  exhibited,  with  some  others, — sporting  subjects, — in 
1843:  it  represents  that  part  of  the  narrative  where  the  Primrose  family, 
desirous  of  making  a  decided  impression  on  their  neighbours,  resolve  to  go 
to  church  on  horseback  ;  and  the  moment  chosen  is  that  where  the  animals 
refuse  to  proceed,  and  the  vicar,  returning  from  church,  discovers  his  wife 
and  daughters  in  the  midst  of  their  mortification.  The  subject  is  treated  with 
much  humour,  the  dismay  of  the  ladies  is  unequivocally  expressed,  and  the 
quality  of  the  artist's  painting  leaves  nothing  to  be  desired. 

One  of  the  largest,  if  not  the  largest  picture  painted  by  Mr.  Tayler,  was 
exhibited  in  1848:  it  is  called  "  Weighing  the  Stag — Interior  of  a  Highland 
Larder:"  this  picture  has  become  familiar  to  the  public  by  means  of  the 
engraving  from  it ;  it  is,  therefore,  unnecessary  to  offer  any  explanation  or 
description  of  the  subject,  which,  as  a  composition  and  as  a  work  of  Art, 
will  bear  comparison  with  Sir  E.  Landseer's  well-known  "Bolton  Abbey  in 
the  Olden  Time."  The  two  prints  "pair"  admirably;  and  we  can  pay 
Mr.  Tayler  no  higher  compliment  than  to  express  such  an  opinion. 

The  picture  from  which  our  second  engraving  is  copied,  "A  Fete 
Champetre  of  the  Time  of  Charles  II.,"  was  exhibited  in  1851  :  it  is  a  large 
work,  very  brilliant  in  colour,  but  somewhat  less  harmonious  in  tone  than 
usual ;  the  incidents  are  impressively  portrayed,  while  the  grouping  and 
drawing  show  the  hand  of  a  master. 

The  general  character  of  Mr.  Tayler' s  style  is  that  of  remarkable  freedom, 
combined  with  great  delicacy ;  he  paints  generally  with  a  very  full  pencil,  and, 
except  in  his  skies  and  distances,  rarely,  we  should  suppose,  uses  thin  washes  ; 
his  colours,  especially  in  his  smaller  drawings,  appear  to  be  laid  on  at  once, 
or  without  repetition.  His  compositions  are  always  exceedingly  picturesque 
and  spirited,  and  attract  scarcely  less  by  the  interest  Englishmen  feel  in  them 
than  by  their  excellence  as  works  of  Art.  There  is  no  living  artist  who  throws 
more,  or  even  so  much,  grace  into  sporting  scenes  as  he  does. 

A  very  elegant  edition  of  "  Sir  Roger  de  Coverley"  has  been  illustrated  by 
him,  and  his  pencil  has  frequently  been  employed  in  the  work  of  embellishing 


62  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

literature  :  a  beautiful  volume  of  coloured  lithographs  has  also  been  published 
from  his  drawings  and  sketches,  and  he  has  contributed  in  his  own  line  of 
Art  to  the  talented  works  of  the  Etching  Club. 

Tayler,  like  Landseer,  was  an  extremely  rapid  worker.  The  one  in  water- 
colours,  the  other  in  oils,  may  be  associated  together,  but  not  compared  with 
each  other  ;  for  the  one  is  the  artist  of  the  court-kennel  and  stable,  the  other 
of  the  field.  Landseer  almost  humanises  his  animals — he  makes  them  think 
and  converse ;  Tayler  presents  them  at  work,  following  the  duties  allotted 
to  them  with  the  instinct  and  intelligence  that  is  their  nature. 

In  conclusion  we  quote  from  "  Modern  Painters  :" — "  For  instance,  there 
are  few  drawings  of  the  present  day  that  involve  greater  sensations  of  power 
than  those  of  Frederick  Tayler.  Every  dash  tells,  and  the  quantity  of  effect 
obtained  is  enormous  in  proportion  to  the  apparent  means.  But  the  effect 
obtained  is  not  complete.  Brilliant,  beautiful,  and  right  as  a  sketch,  the  work 
is  still  far  from  perfection  as  a  drawing." 


William  Dyce,  born  at  Aberdeen  in  1806,  was  son  of  the  late  Dr.  William 
Dyce,  F.R.S.E.,  a  physician  of  local  celebrity,  and  a  man  of  considerable 
scientific  attainments,  who,  intending  his  son  for  one  of  the  learned  profes- 
sions, sent  him  to  the  Marischal  College  and  University  of  Aberdeen,  where 
he  took  the  degree  of  M.  A.  at  the  age  of  sixteen. 

Mr.  Dyce's  early  love  of  Art  proved  too  strong  for  his  father's  intentions, 
so  the  doctor,  after  vainly  attempting  to  turn  him  away  from  his  purpose 
by  opposing  every  obstacle,  consented  to  his  coming  to  London  to  enter 
the  Royal  Academy  as  a  pupil.  Arrived  in  the  metropolis,  Mr.  Dyce  was 
admitted  a  probationer,  after  passing  through  the  customary  form  of  showing 
his  drawings  to  the  authorities  of  the  Academy.  These  drawings  were  made 
at  the  Egyptian  Hall,  in  the  exhibition-rooms  of  the  once  well-known  Mr.  Day, 
with  whom,  and  with  his  friend  the  late  Mr.  Holwell  Carr,  the  young  artist  had 
become  intimate.  It  chanced  that  Day  was  then  about  to  visit  Rome,  and 
he  strongly  persuaded  Mr.  Dyce — his  advice  being  also  backed  by  that  of  Mr. 
Carr — to  pursue  his  studies  in  Italy  rather  than  in  England,  offering  at  the 
same  time  to  be  his  companion  on  the  journey :  the  consent  of  Dr.  Dyce  was 
obtained,  and  the  travellers  set  forth  in  the  autumn  of  1825.  Mr.  Dyce  re- 
mained in  Rome  for  about  nine  months  only,  the  state  of  his  health  requiring 


D  V  C  E.  63 

a  return  to  his  native  country.  During  this  first  visit,  his  tendencies  were 
chiefly  towards  classical  art ;  Titian  and  N.  Poussin,  whose  works  he  studied 
with  great  ardour,  were  his  idols.  Returning  in  1826  to  Aberdeen,  where 
the  winter  of  that  year  and  the  spring  of  the  succeeding  year  were  passed, 
he  occupied  himself  in  the  decoration  of  a  room  in  his  father's  house  with 
arabesques  in  the  classical  manner,  for  which  he  entertained  an  almost 
enthusiastic  admiration  ;  and  in  painting  a  picture  representing  "  Bacchus 
nursed  by  the  Nymphs  of  Nyssa,"  or  which  may  be  called  "The  Education 
of  Bacchus  ;  "  it  was  sent  to  the  Royal  Academy,  and  exhibited  there  in 
1827  :  this  was  the  first  appearance  of  Mr.  Dyce  in  public.  He  came  up  to 
London  that  year  to  see  the  exhibition,  and,  after  a  few  months'  residence 
with  a  friend,  once  more  set  out  for  Rome.  It  was  during  this  second  visit 
that  his  tendency  towards  what  is  termed  Pre-Raffaellite  Art  first  developed 
itself,  and  he  was,  undoubtedly,  the  originator,  in  the  English  school  of 
painting,  of  that  movement  which  has  since  produced  such  numerous  and 
varied  fruits — whether  of  good  or  evil  is  matter  of  opinion. 

In  the  autumn  of  1828  Mr.  Dyce  returned  to  his  native  place,  and  spent 
the  following  year  or  two  partly  in  Scotland  and  partly  in  England,  painting 
Madonnas  and  subjects  of  a  similar  description.  So  little  encouragement, 
however,  did  he  find  for  such  works,  that  he  became  weary  of  producing 
them,  and  actually  laid  down  his  pencil  for  a  considerable  time,  and  applied 
himself  to  scientific  pursuits  :  one  of  the  fruits  of  these  new  labours  was  the 
"  Blackvvell  Prize,"  awarded  to  him  by  Marischal  College,  Aberdeen, 
for  an  essay  on  Electro-Magnetism.  But  shortly  afterwards,  having  been 
requested  by  the  Hon.  Mrs.  Mackenzie  to  copy  a  portrait  by  Lawrence  of 
her  father,  Lord  Seaforth,  his  work  gave  so  much  satisfaction  that  he  was 
forthwith  induced  to  turn  his  attention  to  portrait-painting.  Herein  Dyce 
found  ample  employment  for  the  next  six  or  seven  years,  during  which 
he  resided  at  Edinburgh.  The  catalogues  of  the  Royal  Scotch  Academy 
between  183 1  and  1837  show  numerous  portraits  as  exhibited  by  him.  During 
this  period  he  became  intimately  acquainted  with  several  members  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  for  Manufactures,  and  having  often  been  consulted  by 
them  as  to  the  best  means  of  applying  design  to  manufactures,  he  was  led 
to  a  thorough  consideration  of  the  subject,  and  at  length  matured  and 
proposed  a  scheme  for  the  improvement  of  their  schools,  which  was  printed 
in  the  form  of  a  letter  to  Mr.  Maconochie  Wellwood,  known  at  that  time  as 


64  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Lord  Meadowbank,  of  the  Court  of  Session.  This  pamphlet  having  come 
into  the  hands  of  the  newly  formed  Council  of  the  School  of  Design  at 
Somerset  House,  the  author  was  sent  for,  and  ultimately  was  requested  by  the 
then  President  of  the  Board  of  Trade,  Mr.  Poulett  Thompson,  to  proceed  to 
the  continent  on  a  mission  of  inquiry  into  the  working  of  those  schools  in 
Prussia,  Bavaria,  France,  and  elsewhere,  which  had  for  their  object  the 
improvement  of  taste  in  manufactures.  On  his  return  his  report  to  the 
Board  of  Trade  was  ordered  to  be  printed  by  the  House  of  Commons ;  its 
statements  led  to  a  gradual  remodelling  of  the  School  of  Design,  of  which 
Mr.  Dyce  became  director,  as  well  as  Secretary  to  the  Council ;  these  offices 
he  held  till  the  year  1843,  when  he  resigned  them  on  being  appointed 
Inspector  of  the  Provincial  Schools,  which  had  been  established  during 
his  management,  and  a  member  of  the  Council.  These  latter  posts  he 
occupied  for  about  two  years,  when  his  connection  with  the  establishment 
ceased  for  about  as  long  a  period.  In  1848  his  services  were  again  called 
into  requisition,  for  he  was  asked  to  take  part  in  a  new  form  of  government 
which  had  been  devised  as  a  remedy  for  the  dead-lock  into  which  the  affairs  of 
the  school  had  been  brought,  by  the  incompetency  or  mismanagement  of  those 
who  had  the  direction  of  it.  We  may  here  state  that  this  matter,  during  a 
period  of  four  or  five  years,  occupied  much  of  the  attention  of  her  Majesty's 
Government,  of  the  Houses  of  Parliament,  and  of  the  public  interested  in 
the  question,  and  that  the  discussions  relative  to  it  in  the  parliamentary 
debates  and  in  the  public  papers  became  at  length  of  a  very  painful  nature. 

During  the  five  years  of  Mr.  Dyce's  official  connection  with  the  School 
of  Design,  his  easel  and  his  palette  were  almost  entirely  neglected,  the  only 
pictures  painted  by  him  being  a  "  Madonna  and  Child,"  which  has  never 
been  exhibited;  "St.  Dunstan  separating  Edwy  and  Elgiva ;  "  two  other 
pictures  to  be  referred  to  presently;  and  an  architectural  design,  in  the 
Academy  in  1839.  It  was  at  this  time  also  that  Dyce  first  turned  his  atten- 
tion to  church  music,  a  subject  in  which  he  afterwards  became  deeply  versed. 

He  was  the  founder  of  a  society  for  the  study  and  practice  of  church 
music  of  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries ;  it  was  entitled  the 
"  Motet  Society,"  and  is  now  incorporated  with  the  Ecclesiological  Society. 
In  1842-3  he  published,  in  two  quarto  volumes,  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer, 
with  the  ancient  canto  fcrvio  set  to  it  at  the  Reformation,  and  accompanied 
by  two  dissertations  on  that  kind  of  music,  and  its  applicability  to  English 


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words.  He  received  for  this  work  the  Prussian  Gold  Medal  of  Science  and 
Art  from  the  King-  of  Prussia,  who  was  then  engaged,  with  Von  Bunsen  and 
the  Chevalier  Neukomm,  in  framing  a  liturgy  ivith  music  for  the  new  Evan- 
gelical State  Church  of  that  kingdom. 

On  resigning  the  directorship  of  the  School  of  Design,  in  1843,  he  again 
applied  himself  vigorously  to  Art,  and  was  a  regular  attendant  for  a  year 
at  Mr.  Taylor's  life  academy,  in  St.  Martin's  Lane,  sitting  generally  by  the 
side  of  his  friend  Etty.  The  first  result  of  this  new  study,  one  which,  in 
fact,  he  had  never  previously  undergone,  his  Art-education  having  been  of 
the  most  desultory  kind,  became  immediately  apparent  in  the  picture  of 
"  King  Joash  shooting  the  'Arrow  of  Deliverance,'  "  exhibited  at  the  Aca- 
demy in  1844,  and  forming  one  of  our  engraved  illustrations.  The  subject  is 
taken  from  the  history  narrated  in  the  second  book  of  Kings,  ch.  xiii.,  where 
the  prophet  Elisha,  shortly  before  his  death,  directs  the  King  of  Israel  to 
"open  the  window  eastward,"  and  shoot  "the  arrow  of  deliverance  from 
S)Tia."  The  composition  is  as  original  as  it  is  powerful:  the  drawing  of 
the  two  figures  show,  as  we  have  intimated,  the  master}^  and  skill  acquired 
in  the  life  school  of  Mr.  Taylor,  while  the  costume  manifests  as  distinctly 
the  careful  study  of  the  customs  and  manners  of  the  Easterns  at  that  period, 
when  the  males' wore  little  else  than  a  skirt  girded  about  their  loins.  The 
action  of  the  aged  prophet  is  most  suitable  and  impressive,  as  if  with  his 
outstretched  hands  he  would  urge  the  arrow  even  beyond  the  limits  which 
the  bowman's  strength  could  reach.  This  picture  led,  in  the  early  part  of 
the  following  year,  to  the  election  of  the  painter  into  the  rank  of  Associates 
of  the  Royal  Academy. 

The  success  of  a  fresco  exhibited  in  Westminster  Hall  led  to  the  artist 
being  one  of  the  six  artists  selected  to  prepare  cartoons  for  the  compart- 
ments of  the  House  of  Lords  intended  for  the  reception  of  frescoes.  The 
subject  assigned  by  the  Royal  Commissioners  to  Mr.  Dyce  was,  "  The 
Baptism  of  King  Ethelbert ;  "  it  is  throughout  treated  in  a  spirit  consonant 
with  the  sacred  character  of  the  ceremony.  The  monarch  is  represented 
kneeling,  at  his  side  stands  St.  Augustine,  holding  in  his  hand  a  basin  of 
water  for  the  administration  of  the  holy  rite,  the  queen,  with  a  number  of 
attendants,  forming  the  background.  The  arrangement  of  the  figures  is 
most  skilful  and  judicious  ;  but  the  chief  interest  of  the  composition  centres 
in  the  half-barbaric  and  semi-nude  monarch,  whose  truly  devotional  expres- 

K 


66  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

sion  of  countenance  seems  to  be  reflected  in  the  faces  of  all  around  him, 
whom  the  novelty  of  the  ceremony,  no  less  than  its  solemnity,  has  filled 
with  deep,  earnest  attention,  as  if  the  light  of  the  new  faith  was  penetrating 
their  own  minds  and  hearts.  The  cartoon  is  now  at  Hampton  Court,  and 
was  the  only  one  of  the  six  commissions  which  was  selected  for  execution  in 
fresco ;  it  met  with  the  unqualified  approval  of  the  Commissioners,  who,  in 
consequence  of  the  success  of  the  experiment,  confirmed  their  original  recom- 
mendation that  the  remaining  compartments  should  also  be  filled  in  with 
paintings  of  a  similar  kind.  Messrs.  Maclise,  Cope,  and  Horsley  were  also 
among  the  selected  "six."  Prior  to  the  execution  of  the  "  Ethelbert "  in 
the  House  of  Lords,  Mr.  Dyce  paid  another  visit  to  Italy,  with  the  object 
of  studying  more  specifically  the  best  fresco  works  in  that  country,  and  the 
manner  of  painting  them. 

While  engaged  on  these  public  works  Mr.  Dyce  was  employed  by  the 
Prince  Consort  to  replace,  in  the  pavilion  of  Buckingham  Palace,  a  fresco 
which  Etty  had  painted  there,  one  of  eight,  the  others  being  the  respective 
works  of  Sir  C.  L.  Eastlake,  Sir  E.  Landseer,  Sir  W.  Ross,  Maclise,  Uwins, 
Leslie,  and  Stanfield  ;  the  commission  to  these  artists  was  given  so  far  back 
as  1843,  and  all  the  subjects  were  to  be  taken  from  the  "  Masque  of  Comus." 
Mr.  Dyce's  illustrates  the  lines  commencing  with — • 

"  Noble  lord,  and  lady  bright, 
I  liave  brought  ye  new  delight,"  &c. 

There  are  few  figures  in  the  composition,  but  these  are  grouped  with  much 
skill,  and  are  most  carefully  executed.  Owing  to  the  circumstance  of  the 
picture  being  painted  on  lathing,  and  not,  like  the  rest,  on  the  brick  wall,  it  is 
now,  we  have  heard,  almost  the  only  work  in  the  pavilion  which  damp  and 
other  causes  have  not  almost  obliterated. 

In  1848  he  was  elected  "Academician,''  but  exhibited  nothing  that  year 
in  Trafalgar  Square.  In  1S50  he  exhibited  "  Jacob  and  Rachel,"  one  of  our 
engravings  ;  this  picture  is  a  masterly  production,  full  of  fine  feeling,  and  with- 
out the  least  approach  to  vapid  sentimentalism.  The  draperies  are  well  studied 
as  to  truth  of  costume,  and  are  rich  in  colour;  the  work  throughout,  in 
treatment  and  in  execution,  may  not  unappropriately  be  termed  Titianesque. 
Mr.  Dyce  has,  we  believe,  repeated  this  subject  four  times,  with  minor  altera- 
tions, and  differing  in  size. 

A  commission  very  much  to  his  taste  was  shortly  afterwards  given  him — 


COPE.  67 

this  was  the  decoration  of  the  east  end  of  All  Saints'  Church,  in  Margaret 
Street. 

William  Dyce  died  at  Streatham,  in  February,  1864.  His  labours  on 
the  series  of  frescoes,  illustrating  the  legend  of  King  Arthur,  in  the  Queen's 
Robing  Room,  in  the  Houses  of  Parliament,  have  added  in  no  small  degree 
to  his  reputation  ;  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  his  intense  application  to 
them  accelerated  the  course  of  the  disease  under  which  he  sank. 

He  was  an  honorary  member  of  the  Royal  Scottish  Academy,  a  member 
of  the  Academy  of  Fine  Arts  in  Philadelphia,  and  Professor  of  the  Theory 
of  the  Fine  Arts  in  King's  College,  London.  As  a  writer,  he  was  known  as 
the  author  of  several  pamphlets  ;  among  them  may  be  mentioned  a  theo- 
logical work  in  reply  to  Mr.  Ruskln's  "Notes  on  Sheepfolds,"  some  remarks 
on  "The  Management  of  the  National  Gallery,"  and  several  lectures. 


Mr.  Cope  has  now  been  an  exhibitor  on  the  walls  of  the  Royal  Academy 
for  more  than  fifty  years.  It  is  a  long  period  for  any  artist  to  have  worked, 
and  one  would  naturally  look  to  it  for  a  commensurate  harvest  of  production. 
If  in  his  case  the  result  is  not  so  large  in  point  of  numbers — we  are  referring 
to  exhibited  pictures — as  might  be  expected,  it  is  because  the  commissions  he 
has  received  from  Government  have  occupied  a  very  large  portion  of  his  time. 
Still  the  number  of  pictures  Mr.  Cope  has  contributed  to  the  Academy  are 
satisfactory  evidence  of  his  industry.  Like  most  other  artists,  he  has,  of 
course,  produced  works  which  have  gone  direct  from  his  studio  into  the  hands 
of  his  patrons,  without  appearing  before  the  public. 

He  was  born  in  181 1,  at  Leeds,  where  his  father,  who  died  from  an 
accident  at  a  comparatively  early  age,  practised  as  a  water-colour  painter :  he 
was  an  enthusiast  in  Art,  and  greatly  contributed  by  his  energy  towards  the 
first  provincial  exhibition,  under  the  name  of  the  "  Northern  Society  of 
Arts."  He  was  greatly  esteemed  in  the  locality,  and  his  premature  death 
was  widely  and  deeply  lamented.  After  receiving  a  classical  education  at  the 
Leeds  Grammar  School,  the  son  came  up  to  London  and  attended  the  Art- 
school  in  Bloomsbury  Street,  then  under  the  management  of  Mr.  Sass. 
From  this  he  entered  as  a  student  at  the  Royal  Academy  about  the  time  that 
Messrs.  Maclise,  J.  R.  Herbert,  and  J.  Bell,  the  sculptor,  were  studying  there. 
Shortly  after  leaving  the  schools,  in   1831,  Mr.  Cope  went  to  Paris,  where  he 


68  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

spent  six  months,  chiefly  in  making  studies  from  the  Venetian  pictures  in  the 
gallery  of  the  Louvre.  A  year  at  home  followed  his  sojourn  in  Paris,  during 
which,  it  may  be  presumed,  he  painted  his  first  exhibited  picture,  "  The 
Golden  Age,"  contributed  to  the  Academy  in  1833.  His  next  journey  was 
to  Italy,  for  the  purpose  of  studying  in  the  congenial  Art  atmosphere  of  that 
country.  He  remained  there  two  years  ;  the  first  six  months  in  Rome,  where 
the  beauty  of  the  sculptures  in  the  Vatican  so  absorbed  his  attention  that  he 
did  very  little  in  the  way  of  copying  pictures,  but  employed  himself  during 
the  greater  part  of  the  winter  of  1833-4  in  making  outline  pen-and-ink 
drawings  of  the  marbles,  and  in  sketching  from  nature. 

In  the  autumn  of  1834  he  left  Naples,  and  reached  Florence  by  the  way  of 
Leghorn,  exchanging  the  life  of  comparative  idleness  he  had  led  in  the  first- 
named  city  and  its  neighbourhood  for  hard  work.  In  Florence  Mr.  Cope 
resided  in  the  same  house  with  his  friend  Sir  W.  Boxall,  R.A.,  then,  like  him- 
self, an  Art  student.  The  winter  of  1834-35  was  passed  in  Florence,  and  was 
employed  less  in  copying  the  pictures  there  than  in  placing  on  canvas  some 
of  the  results  of  his  studies  and  observations.  In  the  autumn  of  1835  he 
returned  to  England  by  the  way  of  the  Low  Countries,  for  the  purpose  of 
examining  some  of  the  treasures  of  Flemish  Art.  Before  taking  leave  of 
Italy  he  paid  a  visit  to  Venice,  where  he  stayed  some  months,  making  a  few 
studies  of  paintings,  but  passing  more  hours  in  gondolas  than  in  picture- 
galleries.  Boating  and  angling  have  always  been  his  favourite  recrea- 
tions. 

It  was  only  natural  that  after  so  long  an  absence  from  England  the  friends 
of  the  young  artist  should  be  anxious  to  see  exhibited  some  of  the  results  of 
his  continental  labours.  Accordingly  he  was  persuaded,  though  somewhat 
against  his  will,  to  send  to  the  British  Institution,  in  1836,  a  single  picture, 
"Mother  and  Child,"  the  precursor  of  many  others  of  a  similar  kind  which 
the  public  has  seen  from  his  easel.  Much  to  Mr.  Cope's  surprise,  it  was 
purchased,  and  on  the  "private  view"  day,  by  one  of  the  most  distinguished 
amateurs  of  the  period,  the  late  Mr.  Beckford,  of  Fonthill  Abbey ;  a  fact 
that  bears  testimony  to  the  merit  of  the  work.  He  contributed  to  the  Academy 
exhibition  of  the  same  year  "The  Death  Warrant,"  "The  Nereids,"  and 
"  Hagar  and  Ishmael."  The  sea-caves  of  the  Bay  of  Naples  suggested  the 
second  of  these  pictures.  Henceforth  Mr.  Cope's  paintings  were  annually 
seen  in  the  Royal  Academy,  and  frequently  in  the  British  Institution  ;  they 


COPE.  69 

.generally  found  purchasers,  and  also  led  to  private  commissions.  Among 
these  last  ma}'  be  mentioned  "The  Interior  of  an  Inn  (Osteria),  Italy,"  and 
"The  Board  of  Guardians."  Some  of  his  works  of  this  period  are  in  the 
Lansdowne  collection.  The  appointment,  in  1842,  of  the  Royal  Commission 
for  decorating-  the  Houses  of  Parliament,  opened  up  to  him,  however,  the 
prospect  of  a  new  and  encouraging  field  of  labour,  and  he  was  induced  to 
enter  upon  the  national  competition.  In  the  exhibition  of  cartoons  in  West- 
minster Hall  in  the  following  year,  one  of  the  three  principal  prizes  of  ^300 
was  awarded  to  Mr.  Cope  for  his  "  Trial  by  Jur}^" 

From  this  period  may  be  dated  the  actual  commencement  of  his  career. 
The  Westminster  Hall  exhibition  of  frescoes  in  1844,  to  which  Mr.  Cope 
contributed  "  The  Meeting  of  Jacob  and  Rachel,"  resulted  in  his  obtaining 
a  commission  to  prepare  a  design  for  one  of  the  six  fresco  paintings  intended 
for  the  House  of  Lords,  the  subject  given  to  him  being  "  Edward  the  Black 
Prince  receiving  the  Order  of  the  Garter  from  Edward  III."  The  design 
being  approved  of,  the  work  was  in  due  course  executed  in  fresco. 
Numerous  paintings  for  the  decoration  of  the  Houses  of  Parliament  followed 
at  different  intervals.  We  may  remark  here  that  Mr.  Cope's  success  in  the 
first  fresco  competition,  in  1844,  was  followed  by  his  being  elected  Associate 
of  the  Academy  :  in  1848  he  was  elected  Member. 

The  works  ordinarily  painted  and  exhibited  by  this  artist  may  be  divided 
into  two  classes — historical,  and  domestic  or  genre:  occasionally  sacred  Art 
has  engaged  his  attention,  as  in  "  Hagar  and  Ishmael,"  exhibited  in  1836  ; 
in  the  subject  for  an  altar-piece  for  St.  George's  Church,  Leeds,  painted  in 
1840,  suggested  by  the  words  "  He  ever  liveth  to  make  intercession  for  us ;  " 
in  "  Whosoever  shall  give  to  drink  a  cup  of  cold  water  in  my  name  "  (1844) ; 
in  "I  will  rejoice  in  the  Lord,"  &c.  (1847);  ^nd  in  "The  Disciples  at 
Emmaus,"  exhibited  in  1868.  The  first  historical  oil  picture  exhibited  by 
him,  in  1848,  was  "Cardinal  Wolsey  arriving  at  the  Abbey  of  Leicester." 
This  fine  work,  a  commission  from  the  late  Prince  Consort,  will  always  rank 
among  the  best  of  Mr.  Cope's  productions  for  truth  and  expressive  character, 
and  for  the  manner  in  which  all  the  details  are  carried  out.  "  King  Lear," 
exhibited  in  1850,  is  another  composition  of  profound  sentiment  and  touching 
interest.  The  scene  is  that  wherein  Cordelia  and  the  physician  are  attempting 
to  restore  the  monarch  to  animation.  Here,  as  in  the  preceding  work,  the 
heads  of  the  figures   are  admirably  rendered.     "  Laurence  Saunders,"   the 


70 


BRITISH    PAINTERS. 


second  of  the  Protestant  martyrs  who  suffered  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Mary, 
appeared  in  1851;  the  subject  is  painted  in  three  compartments.  "Royal 
Prisoners  at  Carisbrook  Castle,  1650,"  exhibited  in  1855,  illustrates  the  sad 
story  of  the  death  of  the  Princess  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Charles  I.,  "for 
very  grief"  at  the  loss  of  her  father.  "The  Pilgrim  Fathers — Departure  of 
a  Puritan  Famil}'  for  New  England,  in  1620,"  was  the  next  historical  work 
exhibited  by  him.  in  1857  ;  it  is  a  subject  which  has  been  painted  by  several 
of  our  artists,  but  by  none  with  so  much  impressiveness  and  real  pathos  as  in 
Mr.  Cope's  version. 

Prominent  among  his  other  historical  works  are  "  Cordelia  receiving 
Intelligence  of  the  Ill-treatment  of  her  Sisters  ;  "  "  The  Parting  of  Lord  and 
Lady  Russell ;  "  "  Shylock  and  Jessica  ;  "  and  "  The  Life's  Story  "—Othello 
relating  his  adventures,  engraved  here,  and  exhibited  in  1868.  This  picture 
is  treated  very  much  in  the  same  way  as  one  exhibited  by  Mr.  Cope  in  1853  ; 
but  the  earlier  work  is  a  day,  this  is  a  night,  scene.  In  the  latter,  however,  a 
fourth  figure  is  introduced,  that  standing  behind  Brabantio.  In  both  pictures 
the  heads  of  Desdemona  and  her  father  are  admirable :  the  latter  listens  to 
the  Moor's  narrative  with  dignified  and  quiet  interest;  the  former,  beautiful 
in  expression,  is  absorbed  by  the  story.  Both  works  are  brilliant  in  colour 
and  forcible  in  effect. 

From  the  circle  of  Mr.  Cope's  own  immediate  family  have  arisen  not  a 
few  of  those  pleasing  pictures  that,  in  connection  with  his  name,  have  long 
been  familiar  to  the  habitues  of  the  Academy:  such,  for  example,  as  "The 
Young  Mother,"  "  Florence  Cope  at  Dinner-time,"  "  Baby's  Turn  !  "  (1854), 
which  we  have  engraved,  and  "Morning  Lessons."  These,  and  other 
pictures  of  a  similar  kind,  are  characterized  by  elegance  of  composition, 
truthfulness  of  sentiment,  and  sweetness  of  colour.  One  of  his  best 
works  that  come  legitimately  within  the  range  of  goirc  is  "  Reading  for 
Honours  in  the  Country,"  exhibited  in  1864;  an  original  subject,  admirably 
treated. 

"Yes  or  No  ?  "  came  before  the  public  in  1873,  "  Taming  of  the  Shrew," 
in  1874.  "  Selecting  Pictures  for  the  Royal  Academy  Exhibition,"  a  portrait 
group,  is  the  property  of  the  Academy;  it  was  at  Paris  in  1878.  In  that 
year,  too,  was  painted  "  Lieutenant  Cameron's  welcome  Home." 

Mr.  Cope  has  used  the  etching-needle  with  unqualified  success,  and  has 
exhibited   several    of  the  prints  taken   from  his  plates.     One   of  the    most 


O    Cc; 

I— J  - 


C   ^ 


K    - 
H    I 


"BABY'S    TURN!" 
From  a  Painting  by  Charles  West  Copt;  K.A. 


C  R  E  S  WICK.  71 

remarkable  is  "The  Interior  of  the  Life  School  of  the  Royal  Academy,"  a 
rare  modern  example  of  this  beautiful  art. 

As  a  painter,  Mr.  Cope's  works  will  always  be  estimated  by  their  refine- 
ment and  b}^  simplicity  of  manner.  His  feeling  is  evidently  for  rich 
transparent  colour  and  strong-  force  of  character.  Totally  abjuring  what 
might  strike  the  spectator  by  daring  effort  of  treatment,  or  by  resistless  force 
of  subject,  his  pictures  attract  the  notice  of  the  intelligent  observer  by  a 
charm  which  more  ostentatious  power  often  fails  to  effect  to  an  equal  extent, 
tlis  small  domestic  subjects  were,  we  believe,  painted  as  a  kind  of  recreation 
during  intervals  of  his  laborious  tasks  of  fresco-painting. 


The  name  of  the  artist  to  whose  works  we  now  propose  to  introduce  our 
readers  is  closely  identified  with  our  school  of  landscape  painters.  His 
biography  may  be  written  in  a  few  lines :  the  stor}^  of  his  life  is  on  his 
canvases.  Mr.  Creswick  was  born  at  Sheffield  in  181 1  ;  of  his  lineage  and 
his  first  essays  in  Art  we  know  little ;  but  we  believe  that  he  acquired  some 
knowledge  of  painting  in  Birmingham.  However  this  may  be,  he  soon  found 
his  way  to  London  ;  for  in  1828  he  had  taken  up  his  abode  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  St.  Pancras,  and  exhibited  two  pictures  in  the  Royal  Academy.  A..S 
the  works  of  a  young  artist,  especially  if  he  be  a  landscape  painter,  admit  of 
little  else  than  a  kind  of  general  criticism,  we  briefly  pass  over  the  first  few 
years  of  Mr.  Creswick's  appearance  before  the  public,  with  the  remark  that 
he  became  a  regular  contributor  both  to  the  British  Institution  and  the  Royal 
Academy,  each  successive  year  bearing  witness  to  his  industry,  his  progress, 
and  his  popularity ;  the  scenes  of  his  pictures  at  this  time  were  laid  chiefly  in 
North  Wales,  Yorkshire,  Lancashire,  and  the  adjacent  counties. 

In  1836,  Mr.  Creswick  removed  to  Bayswater,  where  he  had  as  a  neigh- 
bour another  of  our  distinguished  landscape  painters,  the  late  Sir  A.  W. 
Callcott,  R.A.  He  must  have  visited  Ireland  about  this  time  ;  for  some  of 
his  exhibited  pictures  were  views  taken  in  that  country,  such  as  "  Blackrock 
Castle,  Cove  of  Cork  ;  "  "  Glengariff,  County  Cork."  We  have,  however, 
rather  an  indistinct  recollection  of  a  picture  painted  in  1838,  of  a  very 
different  character  from  these;  it  was  called  "The  Wayside  Inn — Market- 
day,"  a  cleverly-painted  composition,  representing  a  picturesque  Incident 
of  rural  life  which  this  age  of  Iron  horses  has  almost  driven  off  the  road. 


72 


BRITISH     PAINTERS. 


Callcott  and  Collins  were  at  this  period  the  two  artists  whose  delineations 
of  English  scenery  were  held  in  the  highest  respect ;  yet  it  was  quite  evident 
there  was  another  rapidly  advancing,  not  to  push  them  from  their  thrones,  but 
to  share  in  the  honours  they  had  acquired.  Creswick,  however,  was  no  copyist 
of  either ;  he  followed  Nature  alone,  and  so  closely,  that  in  many  of  his  early 
pictures  there  is  such  an  undue  preponderance  of  the  vivid  green  peculiar  to 
our  trees  and  herbage,  as  to  be  painful  to  the  eye  on  canvas,  however 
welcome  it  is  in  the  real  landscape.  There  was  also  some  apprehension  in 
the  minds  of  those  who  were  watching  his  progress,  that  the  delicacy  of  touch 
and  attention  to  detail  which  his  works  showed  would  degenerate  into  pretti- 
ness — an  error  that  a  painter  finds  difficulty  in  amending  if  it  once  becomes 
a  practice.  But  the  pictures  he  exhibited  in  1841 — five  at  the  British 
Institution,  and  three  at  the  Royal  Academy — entirely  removed  whatever 
apprehension  existed  :  he  seems  all  at  once  to  have  struck  into  a  new  path, 
one  uniting  vigour  and  boldness  of  handling  with  delicacy,  and  greater 
variety  and  harmony  of  tints  with  the  fresh  verdure  of  Nature.  Two  of  the 
pictures  of  this  year  may  be  singled  out  as  examples  of  decided  improvement. 
"A  Road  Scene"  (British  Institution),  into  which  a  blacksmith's  shop  is 
introduced;  and  "A  Rocky  Stream"  (Royal  Academy):  these  are  both 
most  vigorously  touched.  The  former  is  an  evening  scene  ;  the  dim  light  of 
closing  day  is  very  skilfully  managed,  and  the  reflection  of  the  blacksmith's 
fire  on  the  adjacent  trees  is  perfectly  illusive.  The  "  Rocky  Stream  "  is  a 
small  picture,  but — our  readers  must  pardon  an  unintentional  pun — it  is  a 
gem  of  the  purest  water,  boldly  and  vigorously  painted,  the  strength  happily 
mixed  with  delicacy. 

The  "reign"  of  Mr.  Creswick  may  be  dated  from  1842,  when  he 
exhibited  two  pictures  at  the  British  Institution — "Afternoon"  and  "June" 
— which  surpassed  all  previous  efforts.  In  the  autumn  of  this  year  he  was 
elected  an  Associate  of  the  Royal  Academy. 

It  would  be  vain  to  attempt — and,  indeed,  it  is  altogether  unnecessary — 
to  give  a  catalogue  raisonne,  in  our  limited  space,  of  the  works  of  so 
productive  a  painter  as  Mr.  Creswick,  we  shall,  therefore,  only  just  note  down 
a  few  of  his  pictures.  Where  an  artist,  as  he  has  done,  adheres  so  closely  to 
one  range  of  subject-matter,  and  with  very  little  alteration  of  treatment,  it  is 
difficult  to  avoid  sameness  of  description.  Welsh  glens  and  mountain- 
streams,   skirts  of  forests  and  avenues  of  lofty  elms,  luxuriant  valleys  and 


THE   PLEASANT  WAY   HOME. 
From,  a  Painting  by  Thomas  C'eswick,  Ji.A. 


CUES  WICK. 


73 


winding-  rivers,  however  variedly  disposed  in  nature  or  in  Art,  are  not  the 
materials  on  which  to  comment  without  hazard  of  repetition  and  monotony ; 
hence  the  landscape  painter  taxes  the  ingenuity  of  his  critic  or  biographer  far 
more  than  the  painter  of  historical  or  genre  subjects. 

A  "Welsh  Glen"  (Royal  Academy,  1843)  is  a  picture  that  those  who 
have  once  seen  will  not  soon  forget.  It  is  a  bright  summer's  day,  but  the 
stream,  flowing-  down  between  lofty  perpendicular  rocks,  crowned  with  thick 
foliage,  is  in  deep  shadow,  presenting  to  the  eye  a  solitude  of  exceeding 
beauty  and  solemnity,  iinllo  pcnetrabilis  astro,  for  the  only  ray  of  sunshine 
that  lights  it  up  falls  on  the  crest  of  the  rocks  and  on  the  trees.  The 
"  Mountain  Torrent "  (Royal  Academy,  1844)  is  a  highly  poetical  treatment 
of  a  similar  kind  of  subject.  The  scene  lies,  we  should  think,  in  Scotland, 
the  rocks  being  bolder  and  more  rugged  than  those  generally  found  in 
Wales,  and  the  torrent  broader  and  wilder  in  its  impetuous  rushings :  the 
tumultuous  dashing  of  the  water  is  finely  expressed  in  this  -work. 

In  the  British  Institution,  in  1845,  was  a  picture,  not  very  large  in 
dimensions,  which  was  rather  a  novelty  from  the  hand  of  this  painter ;  the 
subject  was  an  old  water-mill ;  so  venerable  it  seemed,  that  the  oldest 
inhabitant  of  the  parish  in  w'hich  it  then  stood  could  scarcely  remember  to 
have  heard  the  clicking  of  the  wheel,  decayed  and  w^orn  out.  Hwerj  item  in 
this  work  is  painted  with  exceeding  fidelity,  yet  it  leaves  an  unpleasant 
impression  on  the  mind  by  its  truth ;  it  suggests  a  thought  of  bankruptcy, 
ruin,  and  distress.  Of  five  pictures  exhibited  at  the  Royal  Academy  this 
year,  two  especially  deserve  to  be  pointed  out  for  their  picturesque  composi- 
tion and  freshness  of  colour — "  The  River  in  the  Glen,"  and  "  Rain  on  the 
Hills;"  it  is  impossible  to  imagine  any  landscape  scenery  more  beautifully 
painted  than  are  these  subjects. 

Among  his  contributions  to  the  Royal  Academy  in  1846  was  "The 
Pleasant  Way  Home,"  a  picture  in  which  the  subject  is  particularly  well 
chosen  to  suit  the  artist's  powers  of  execution.  It  is  a  scene  to  cause  en-vy 
in  those  who  are  compelled  to  trace  their  way  home  through-  lines  of  bricks 
and  mortar,  instead  of  such  a  noble  avenue  of  green  leaves,  dancing  to  the 
music  of  the  summer's  breeze,  as  we  see  here. 

There  was  a  picture  exhibited  by  this  artist  at  the  Academy,  in  1847, 
which  bore  the  simple  yet  comprehensive  title  of  "  England;  "  and  certainly 
our  rich  and  verdant  landscape  -was  never  more  exquisitely  represented  than 

L 


74 


BRITISH    PAINTERS. 


in  this  work,  the  largest  we  recollect  from  his  pencil ;  it  is,  we  imagine,  a 
composition,  not  a  sketch  from  Nature ;  but  England  boasts  many  such 
scenes, — a  wide  expanse  of  country,  corn-fields,  and  pastures  well  watered, 
homesteads,  and  distant  spires  that  mark  the  spots  where 

"  The  nide  forefathers  of  the  hamlet  sleep." 

Indeed,  this  painter  never  at  any  former  period  came  out  in  such  power 
and  general  excellence ;  while  we  are  quite  sure  he  never  afterwards  sur- 
passed his  productions  of  1847,  an  anmis  miradi/is  with,  him:  let  those  who 
can,  recall  to  mind  his  "Doubtful  Weather,"  and  "The  London  Road  a 
Hundred  Years  ago,"  to  prove  the  truth  of  our  assertion.  How  magically 
the  light  plays  over  the  barren  heath  in  the  former  picture,  and  how 
charmingly  it  alternates  with  the  broad  transparent  shadows  ! — in  the  latter, 
the  landscape  is  not  only  rendered  with  the  most  poetical  feeling,  but  there  is 
in  the  composition  a  group  of  figures  introduced  such  as  we  have  never  seen 
from  his  hand :  whoever  owns  one  of  these  three  works  possesses  a  treasure 
of  Art  he  cannot  value  too  highly. 

In  1850  the  name  of  Mr.  Ansdell  appeared,  in  conjunction  with  that  of 
Creswick,  against  a  picture  exhibited  at  the  British  Institution,  under  the 
title  of  "  Southdowns ; "  the  "Downs"  or  landscape  being,  of  course, 
painted  by  the  latter,  and  the  "  Southdowns,"  or  sheep,  by  the  former. 
Each  did  his  part  marvellously  well ;  so  well,  indeed,  as  to  induce  them  to 
work  together  again  at  various  subsequent  times.  The  "Wind  on  Shore," 
an  Academy  picture  of  the  same  year,  gave  another  proof  of  the  talent  of 
Mr.  Creswick  in  depicting  coast  scenery ;  it  would  be  hard  to  say  whether  in 
such  subjects,  or  in  those  with  which  his  name  is  more  frequently  connected, 
he  shows  greater  excellence ;  he  was  elected  Academician  at  the  end  of  this 
year. 

We  have  spoken  of  the  year  1847  as  Mr.  Creswick' s  great  year ;  a  few, 
perhaps,  of  his  subsequent  pictures  will  bear  comparison  with  it,  but  certainly 
not  many.  He  afterwards  adopted  a  low  and  dingy  style  of  colouring,  and 
in  the  last  few  years  of  his  life  even  his  greatest  admirers  would  speak  of  him 
as  one  whose  time  had  gone  by.  We  may,  however,  note  the  titles  of  "  A 
Roughish  Road,"  exhibited  at  the  Royal  Academy  in  i860;  "  The  Village 
Smithy,"  which  appeared  in  1865  ;  "  A  Breezy  Day  on  the  English  Coast," 
in   which    the   figures   were    painted    by   Ansdell,    1866;     "Sunshine   and 


A  N  S  n  E  L  L.  75 

Flowers,"  in  i86g,  where  the  figures  were  the  work  of  J.  W.  Bottomley. 
Thomas  Creswick  died  after  a  lingering  illness  on  the  28th  of  December, 
1869.  The  year  after  his  death  two  of  his  pictures,  "  Mill  near  Whitby  "  and 
"  Afternoon,"  were  exhibited  in  London. 

We  are  not  among  those  who  regard  landscape-painting  as  an  Art 
requiring  little  mental  capacity.  Callcott  was  in  many  respects  a  highly 
cultured  man,  while  the  roughness  of  Turner's  early  surroundings  in  vain 
tried  to  cloud  over  the  fulness  of  a  subtle  and  refined  thought.  It  is  matter 
for  regret  that  information  on  Creswick's  Birmingham  life  is  not  forthcoming  : 
we  are  unwilling  to  suppose  that  his  Art  studies,  close  and  lengthy  though 
they  must  have  been,  were  allowed  to  put  out  of  sight  entirely  the  question 
of  general  mental  culture. 


Animal-painting — we  refer  more  especially  to  the  representation  of 
domestic  animals,  or  those  which  are  in  some  degree  of  a  similar  nature — is 
popular  only  among  a  people  who  take  particular  interest  in  the  living 
objects ;  hence  it  finds  favour  with  us  in  England  because,  as  a  nation,  we 
are  lovers  of  horses  and  dogs,  of  the  tenants  of  the  farmer's  straw-yard,  of 
the  green  meadows  dotted  over  with  flocks  and  herds,  of  the  glens  and 
mountains  where  the  wild  deer  roam,  and  of  the  parks  where  the  stag  and  the 
hind  shelter  themselves  beneath  the  broad  oak.  We  patronise  the  turf  and 
the  hunt,  the  nobleman  keeps  his  stud,  the  country  gentleman  subscribes  to 
the  "pack,"  the  poor  man  is  often  seen  sharing  his  scanty  meal  with  the 
faithful  dog  that  bears  him  company.  These  predilections,  or  fancies,  or 
whatever  else  they  may  be  called,  are  a  part  of  our  nationality,  and  it  is  no 
wonder  that  the  productions  of  our  artists  who  make  such  subjects  their 
study  have  a  particular  hold  on  our  regard. 

We  place  the  name  of  Mr.  Ansdell  among  those  animal-painters 
who  have  rendered  themselves  especially  conspicuous  by  the  excellence  of 
their  productions  in  this  department  of  Art ;  and  there  are  few,  we  suspect, 
intimately  acquainted  with  his  works,  who  will  be  disposed  to  question  the 
propriety  of  the  position  here  assigned  him.  Our  story  of  his  Art-life  is 
necessarily  brief,  for  there  is  little  to  tell  beyond  what  his  pictures  point  to. 
He  was  born  in  Liverpool  in  181 5,  and  was  educated  at  the  Blue  Coat 
School  of  that  town,  an  institution  similar  to  that  in  the  metropolis.     After 


76  BRITISH     PAINTERS. 

attempting,  but  in  vain,  until  he  had  reached  the  age  of  twenty-one,  to  follow 
some  business  or  profession  apart  from  that  which  he  was  ultimately  destined 
to  practise,  the  love  of  Art  had  so  firmly  taken  possession  of  his  mind  as  to 
leave  no  other  course  but  to  settle  down  to  painting  in  earnest.  What 
induced  him  to  turn  his  attention  to  that  particular  class  of  subjects  which 
has  always  been  identified  with  his  name,  it  is  not  easy  to  determine ;  for 
certainly  Liverpool,  with  its  crowded  docks  and  marts  of  commerce — where 
he  resided  till  about  the  year  1847 — is  not  a  place  suggestive  of  droves  of 
cattle  at  pasture,  or  herds  of  mountain  deer.  Art  is,  however,  independent 
of  localit}^  and  oftentimes  turns  into  a  channel  the  very  opposite  of  that  in 
which  it  might  be  expected  to  run.  Possibly  the  works  of  Landseer  may 
have  given  the  bias  to  his  mind,  and  rendered  him  ambitious  of  treading  the 
same  path.  Be  this  as  it  may,  that  path  was  chosen,  and  neither  the  artist, 
nor  the  public  jealous  of  the  credit  of  the  British  school,  has  any  reason  to 
regret  the  decision.  Mr.  Ansdell's  studies  were  pursued  in  the  place  of  his 
birth,  nor  did  he  come  to  reside  in  London  till  the  year  just  mentioned. 

But  he  must  have  travelled  far  beyond  Liverpool  for  subject-matter  long 
ere  he  quitted  it  as  a  place  of  residence ;  for  the  first  pictures  he  exhibited  at 
the  Royal  Academy  were,  "Grouse  Shooting,"  and  "A  Galloway  Farm,  the 
property  of  the  Marquis  of  Bute;"  this  was  in  1840.  "The  Death,"  con- 
tributed in  1843,  would  seem  to  have  been  suggested  by  some  one  or  other 
of  Landseer's  pictures  :  a  fine  stag,  hard  pressed  by  the  hounds,  has  taken  to 
the  water,  but  the  lake  is  shallow  where  he  has  entered  it,  and  the  dogs  are 
on  him ;  the  animals  are  admirably  painted,  yet  the  subject  is  one  of  a  class 
that  must  always  give  more  pain  than  pleasure  to  contemplate. 

In  1846  Mr.  Ansdell  contributed  for  the  first  time  to  the  British  Insti- 
tution; it  was  by  far  the  best  work  he  had  hitherto  exhibited,  and  different  in 
subject  from  his  previous  productions.  The  "Drover's  Halt,  Isle  of  Mull  in 
the  Distance,"  is  a  large  picture,  showing  a  numerous  group  of  figures  and 
cattle  halting  at  a  roadside  bothie  in  the  Highlands ;  much  study  was 
evidently  given  to  the  composition,  and  great  care  bestowed  on  its  execution : 
every  object  is  painted  with  exceeding  delicacy,  combined  with  freedom  of 
handling  and  force  of  expression.  "  The  Stag  at  Bay  "  was  exhibited  in  the 
same  year  at  the  Royal  Academy :  an  idea  of  the  extent  of  the  canvas  may 
be  conceived  from  the  fact  that  the  animals  are  all  life-size.  The  scene  is 
one  of  the  wildest  that  can   be  conceived — the  rocky  bed   of  a   mountain 


A  N  S  D  E  L  L.  77 

torrent,  to  which  the  stag  has  fled,  like  Dentatus  of  old,  to  defend  himself 
from  his  assailants,  one  or  two  of  whom  he  has  already  wounded ;  but  the 
hunter's  rifle  appears  over  the  rock,  and  the  noble  animal  is  doomed  to  fall. 
The  dogs  are  accurately  drawn,  and  display  extraordinaiy  vivacity  and  spirit, 
while  the  stag  is  painted  with  great  power  and  truth.  Landseer  has  produced 
a  similar  subject,  but  the  compositions  are  wholly  different.  In  the  following 
year  Mr.  Ansdell  sent  to  the  Academy  "The  Combat,"  a  companion  work 
to  that  last  mentioned  :  on  no  former  occasion,  and  we  may  almost  add  at  no 
later  time,  has  this  artist  shown  greater  power  of  conception  and  execution. 
The  combatants,  two  magnificent  stags,  are  engaged  in  fierce  and  deadly 
struggle ;  both  are  nearly  exhausted,  and  yet  the  battle  rages  furiously,  while 
there  are  few  accessories  of  any  kind  to  draw  off  the  attention  of  the  spectator 
from  the  combat :  a  finer  work  of  the  kind  has  rarely  been  seen  on  the  walls 
of  our  public  galleries.  Both  this  and  the  preceding  picture  must  be  well 
known  from  Ryall's  large  engravings  from  them. 

At  the  British  Institution  in  1850  was  a  very  charming  rural  picture  called 
*'  Southdowns,"  painted  in  conjunction  with  Creswick,  which  we  have  already 
mentioned  in  our  notice  of  the  latter  painter.  These  two  artists  have 
frequently  since  worked  together,  and  with  unqualified  success.  Of  the 
"Southdowns"  it  is  only  necessary  to  say  that  Mr.  Ansdell's  sheep  are  as 
true  to  nature  as  his  wilder  or  swifter  animals — wolves,  stags,  and  dogs. 
"  England — a  Day  in  the  Country"  (British  Institution),  1851,  was  the  joint 
production  of  Mr.  Ansdell  and  Creswick :  the  title  is  significant  of  the 
subject ;  a  beautiful  pastoral  scene,  with  a  team  of  horses  in  the  foreground ; 
it  is  a  charming  picture. 

We  find  Mr.  Ansdell  and  Creswick  once  more  working  together  on  a 
picture  bearing  the  title  of  "The  Park,"  exhibited  at  the  British  Institution 
in  1855.  Creswick  in  this  had  the  lion's  share  of  the  labour,  and  merits  the 
same  proportion  of  the  honour,  though  Ansdell's  group  of  startled  deer  on 
the  green  knoll  to  the  left  of  the  picture  adds  no  little  charm  to  the  com- 
position. In  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1855,  Mr.  Ansdell's  name  appears 
against  four  pictures;  "Feeding  the  Calves"  was  painted  in  conjunction 
with  Mr.  Frith,  who  contributed  the  caterer,  a  bonnle  maiden,  in  the  act  of 
pouring  a  quantity  of  milk  Into  a  trough  for  the  young  kine.  This  is  a  first- 
rate  picture  of  Its  kind,  for  the  two  painters  appear  to  have  vied  with  each 
other  to  Impart  beauty  and  delicacy  to  their  respective  tasks. 


78  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

We  have  now,  though  we  can  do  so  but  briefly,  to  look  at  Mr.  Ansdell 
away  from  the  glens  and  highlands  of  Scotland,  the  moors  and  the  pastures 
of  England.  In  the  summer  of  1856,  accompanied  by  Mr.  Phillip,  R.A.,  and 
again  in  1857,  alone,  he  journeyed  into  Spain,  making  the  province  of  Seville 
his  sketching-ground.  The  results  of  these  several  visits  have  been  since 
manifested  in  the  works  of  both  painters;  almost  all  Mr.  Ansdell' s  pictures 
dating  from  the  period  of  the  first  journey  are  of  Spanish  subjects ;  the  field 
was  new  and  fruitful,  and  if  he  has  not  reaped  from  it  additional  honours — for 
he  could  scarcely  surpass  what  he  had  previously  done — he  has  given  a  most 
pleasing  variety  to  his  productions  :  animals,  whether  Spanish  or  English, 
can  only  be  represented  well.  Our  two  engravings  are  both  from  Spanish 
scenes ;  not  only  have  they  the  advantage  of  novelty,  but  these  two  pictures 
fairly  represent  Mr.  Ansdell' s  best  style.  "  Isla  Mayor — ^Banks  of  the 
Guadalquivir  "  is  at  first  sight  not  much  more  than  a  study  of  Spanish  cattle  ; 
on  a  closer  inspection,  however,  the  cattle-drivers  and  their  horses  are  seen  to 
be  objects  of  much  interest,  while  the  accuracy  of  the  perspective  can 
scarcely  be  overrated.  "The  Spanish  Flower-Seller,"  in  accuracy  of  detail, 
reminds  us  of  the  late  J.  F.  Lewis,  R.A.  ;  it  is  a  pleasant  scene  enough. 
These  Spanish  pictures  attracted  much  public  attention  on  their  first  appear- 
ance in  1857  and  1858. 

Art,  as  Mr.  Ansdell  has  practised  it,  cannot  be  subjected  to  the  criticism 
which  may  be  applied  to  historical,  or  even  landscape,  painting :  commentary 
must  be  more  general  than  specific  ;  for  where  there  exists  so  great  similarity 
in  the  materials  of  the  pictures,  there  is  necessarily  little  room  for  variety  of 
description  or  remark.  That  Mr.  Ansdell  has  closely  studied  animal  life, 
that  he  represents  it  faithfully,  vigorously,  and  picturesquely,  and  that  his 
productions  are  among  the  best  of  their  kind  which  our  school — and,  indeed, 
any  other — has  brought  forward,  is  to  pay  him  and  them  no  higher  compli- 
ment than  is  merited.  If  we  had  no  Landseer,  Ansdell  would,  unquestion- 
ably, occupy  the  very  foremost  place  in  this  department  of  Art ;  but  there 
are  some  of  his  pictures  that  may  stand  in  favourable  juxtaposition  with  those 
of  Sir  Edwin  :  if  the  latter  is  unequalled  in  delineating  the  intelligent  c[ualities 
of  the  animal  tribes,  the  former  may  claim  the  pre-eminence  in  delineating 
their  fiercer  natures. 

On  three  occasions  Mr.  Ansdell  has  received  the  "  Hey  wood"  medal  for 
his  works  exhibited  at  Manchester ;  and  a  gold  medal  was  awarded  to  him 


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BARKER.  yg 

for  pictures  in  the  great  Paris  Exhibition  of  1855 — "  The  Wolf-Slayer,"  and 
"Turning  the  Drove."  In  1861  the  artist  was  elected  an  Associate  of  the 
Royal  Academy  ;  ten  years  later  he  became  a  full  Academician. 

The  death  of  Creswick,  in  1869,  deprived  Mr.  Ansdell  of  an  earnest  friend 
and  valued  fellow-worker.  We  do  not  incline  to  lay  any  stress  on  the  pictures 
painted  by  him  while  an  Associate.  In  1871,  ho\yever,  he  was  again  to  the 
front  with  "  Feeding  the  Goats  in  the  Alhambra."  "  The  Wandering 
Minstrel,"  exhibited  in  1876,  and  "The  Home  of  the  Red  Deer,"  in  1877, 
were  again  well  above  the  average  of  his  productions.  Of  another  picture, 
exhibited  in  1877,  \h^  Art  Journal  says:  "The  Goatherds  of  Granada"  is 
one  of  the  most  beautiful  representations  of  a  special  phase  of  Spanish  rural 
life  Mr.  Ansdell  has  ever  painted.  The  composition  of  the  group  is  very 
effective,  and  the  whole  subject  most  pleasing." 


If  England  possessed  what  France  has  at  Versailles,  a  gallery  almost 
expressly  devoted  to  a  pictorial  record  of  her  military  exploits,  the  artist 
whose  works  would  find  the  most  prominent  place  in  such  a  collection  would 
be  Mr.  T.  Jones  Barker,  who  is  certainly  the  Horace  Vernet  of  England,  our 
principal  battle-painter ;  but,  nationally,  we  care  not  to  "  fight  our  battles 
o'er  again  " — at  least  on  canvas — and  we  leave  them  to  be  memorialised  by 
the  pen  of  the  historian  rather  than  the  pencil  of  the  artist.  With  the 
exception  of  Maclise's  two  grand  scenic  pictures,  "  The  Meeting  of  Welling- 
ton and  Blucher  at  Waterloo  "  and  "  The  Death  of  Nelson,"  we  do  not  call 
to  mind  a  single  instance  where  a  painter  has  received  a  commission  for  a 
picture  commemorating  a  battle,  though  we  have  national  statues  and 
monuments  of  successful  commanders,  erected  after  their  decease. 

Mr.  Barker  is  the  eldest  son  of  Thomas  Barker,  who  settled  in  Bath 
towards  the  close  of  the  last  century,  and  acquired  a  good  reputation  as  an 
artist,  especially  by  his  famous  picture  of  "  The  Woodman,"  which  to  this 
day  may  be  seen  copied  on  every  conceivable  object  whereto  decorative  Art 
of  any  kind  is  capable  of  being  applied,  from  the  lid  of  a  papicr-mdclie 
snuff-box  to  the  signboard  of  a  roadside  or  village  hostelry,  so  universally 
popular  did  the  subject  become.  His  son  was  born  at  Bath  in  181 5  ;  and 
after  receiving  an  education  at  Heckingham  College,  commenced  the  study 
of  painting  under    his    father;    went    to    Paris    in     1835,  ^""^^    entered    the 


8o  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Studio  of  Horace  Vernet,  whose  pupil  he  was  for  many  years.  During  his 
residence  in  France  Mr.  Barker  was  a  frequent  exhibitor  at  the  Salon,  and 
received  three  gold  medals  from  the  Government.  He  painted  several 
pictures  for  Louis  Philippe,  the  principal  one  being  a  very  large  canvas 
representing  "  The  Death  of  Louis  XIV."  It  was,  unfortunately,  destroyed, 
together  with  one  by  Horace  Vernet  and  another  by  Paul  Delaroche,  at  the 
sacking  of  the  Palais-Royal  in  1848.  For  the  Princess  Marie,  youngest 
daughter  of  Louis  Philippe,  Mr.  Barker  painted,  in  1840,  "The  Bride  of 
Death,"  for  which  he  received  the  decoration  of  the  Cross  of  the  Legion 
of  Honour.  After  the  princess's  death  the  picture  was  sold  with  the  rest  of 
her  Art-works,  and  bought  by  the  painter,  in  whose  possession  it  has  since 
remained. 

When  Mr.  Barker  returned  to  England,  in  about  1S45,  we  find  him 
exhibiting  some  portraits  at  the  Royal  Academy;  for  example,  one,  in  that 
year,  of  Mrs.  Campbell,  of  Islay  ;  and,  in  1847,  two  single  portraits,  with  a 
group  entitled  "  Beauties  of  the  Court  of  Charles  II. :  Portraits."  In  1850 
he  contributed  to  the  same  gallery  "News  of  Battle  —  Edinburgh  after 
Flodden."  Randolph  Murray,  arrayed  In  plate  armour,  having  escaped  from 
the  disastrous  field  of  Flodden,  is  seen  riding  slowly  and  sadly  through  the 
streets  of  Edinburgh,  surrounded  by  a  concourse  of  people  demanding 
intelligence  of  the  fight,  as  described  in  one  of  Aytoun's  "  Lays  of  the 
Scottish  Cavaliers  :  " — 

"  Round  him  crush  the  people,  crjnng,  '  Tell  us  all — oh,  tell  us  true  ! 
Wliere  are  they  who  went  to  battle,  Randolph  Murray,  sworn  to  you  ? 
Wliere  are  they,  our  brothers — children  ?     Have  they  met  the  English  foe  ? 
Why  art  thou  alone,  unfoUowed  ?     Is  it  weal  or  is  it  woe  ?  ' 
Like  a  corpse  the  grisly  warrior  looks  from  out  his  helm  of  steel, 
But  no  word  he  spoke  in  answer — only  with  his  armed  heel 
Chides  his  weary  steed,  and  onward  up  the  city  streets  they  ride, 
Fathers,  sisters,  mothers,  children,  slirieking,  praying,  by  his  side  : 
'  By  the  God  that  made  thee,  Randolph,  tell  us  what  mischance  hath  come  ! ' 
Then  be  lifts  his  riven  banner, — and  the  asker's  voice  is  dumb." 

The  picture  was  hung  so  high  in  the  gallery  it  was  not  easy  to  examine  it  In 
detail,  but  one  could  see  sufficient  to  show  that  the  sentiment  of  the  subject 
was  well  sustained. 

We  were  Invited  by  the  painter.  In  1853,  to  an  incident  in  the  life  of 
Wellington,  during  his  campaign  in  the  Peninsula.  Being  In  the  village 
of  Soraulen,  near  Pampeluna,  on  July  27th,  1813,  he  observed  a  movement 


BARKER.  8' 

of  the  enemy  which  induced  him  to  dismount  instantly  from  his  horse, 
write  a  hurried  note  in  pencil  on  the  parapet  of  the  bridge,  and  send  it  off 
to  one  of  his  generals  by  Lord  Fitzroy  Somerset.  The  incident  is  skilfully 
depicted,  and  the  picture  may  be  considered  as  the  first  of  those  scenes  of 
modern  warfare  by  which  Mr.  Barker  has  chiefly  made  his  reputation,  and  which 
have  become  popular  by  means  of  the  engraver's  aid  ;  many  of  these  pictures 
have  never  been  exhibited  except  in  the  galleries  of  the  printsellers  for 
whom  they  were  painted.  Among  them  may  be  mentioned  "  The  Meeting  of 
Wellington  and  Blucher  at  La  Belle  Alliance,"  painted  in  1851  for  Alderman 
Sir  G.  F.  Moon,  "  Lord  Nelson  receiving  the  Swords  of  the  Spanish  Officers 
on  board  the  San  Josef,''  painted  for  Messrs.  Hay  ward  and  Leggett,  and 
the  "Surrender  of  Napoleon  IIL  at  Sedan,"  painted  from  sketches  made  on 
the  spot  by  Mr.  Barker,  the  day  after  the  battle.  They  occupy,  for  the  most 
part,  canvases  of  very  large  dimensions. 

Two  pictures,  suggested  by  incidents  in  the  Crimean  campaign,  were  sent 
to  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1855;  one  was  called  "An  Incident  at  the 
Battle  of  Balaklava,"  and  showed  a  trooper's  horse  standing  by  the  side  of 
his  dead  master,  which  an  eye-witness  stated  he  saw  the  faithful  animal  do  for 
upwards  of  an  hour.  The  other  represents  the  charger  of  Captain  Nolan 
bearing  back  his  dead  master  to  the  British  lines.  From  1855  to  i860  Mr. 
Barker  was  absent  from  the  exhibitions  of  the  Royal  Academy  ;  but  in  the 
last-named  year  he  sent  "  The  Horse-race  at  Rome,"  the  first  idea  of  the 
large  engraved  picture  "  II  Corso ;  "  and  a  portrait  of  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Lockhart,  M.P.,  painted  for  the  County  Hall,  Lanark. 

Mr.  Barker  had  now  laid  aside,  at  least  for  a  time,  what  may  be  called  his 
"war  canvases,"  and  employed  his  pencil  on  subjects  of  a  less  exciting 
nature.  Such  is  his  "  Studio  of  Salvator  Rosa,"  exhibited  at  the  Academy 
in  1865  :  he  had  sent  nothing  there  since  1862.  The  composition  is  full  of 
appropriate  character ;  it  shows  this  wild,  weird-like,  yet  vigorous  Italian 
painter  a  prisoner  among  the  banditti  of  the  Abruzzi,  painting  the  portraits 
of  these  picturesque  outlaws,  according  to  what  Lady  Morgan  describes  in 
her  "  Life  of  Salvator  Rosa;  "  but  for  which  she  seems  to  have  had  little  if 
any  authority;  some  later  writers,  indeed,  reject  it  altogether.  Still  the 
story  served  Mr.  Barker  for  a  capital  picture.  The  next  year  he  exhibited 
a  scene  from  Goethe's  Faust,  "  Margaret  in  the  Cathedral:  the  Whispering 
of  the  Evil  Spirit." 

M 


82  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

When  the  Royal  Academy  opened  its  new  galleries  at  Burlington  House, 
Mr.  Barker  was  there  with  two  pictures  ;  one  of  these  was  a  scene  between 
"Dean  Swift  and  Stella,"  as  described  by  Mrs.  Jameson,  in  her  "Women 
Wooed  and  Won  by  Poets,"  wherein  the  lady,  "  broken  in  heart  and  blighted 
in  name,"  pleads  with  the  Dean  to  acknowledge  her  as  his  lawful  wife;  but 
to  no  purpose,  though  Stella  was  at  the  time  drawing  near  to  her  life's  end. 
The  story  is  told  with  considerable  power  and  pathos,  and  especially  so  if  we 
make  allowance  for  the  fact  that  the  artist's  strength  lies  in  subjects  of  a 
very  different  character. 

From  the  year  1872  Mr.  Barker  has  exhibited  nothing  but  war  pictures  ; 
in  that  year  he  sent  to  the  Academy  "  The  Melee  :  Charge  of  Prussian  White 
Cuirassiers  and  Chasseurs  d'Afrique,  near  Vionville,  15th  August,  1870," — 
a  composition  much  in  common  with  all  such  scenes  :  a  few  men  desperately 
engaged  in  the  front,  and  in  the  background  smoke  and  inextricable  confu- 
sion ;  it  is  almost  beyond  the  ingenuity  of  any  artist  to  give  much  variety  to 
subjects  of  this  description.  In  1874  appeared  "  Balaklava  :  One  of  the  Six 
Hundred;"  a  subject  which  took  a  wider  scope  in  the  year  1876,  when  he 
exhibited  the  picture  we  have  engraved,  "  The  Return  through  the  Valley  of 
Death,"  representing  Lord  George  Paget,  with  his  brave  companions  of  the 
I  ith  Hussars  and  4th  Light  Dragoons,  about  seventy  men  out  of  the  "  gallant 
six  hundred,"  forcing  their  way  through  the  forest  of  Russian  lances  vainly 
interposed  to  bar  their  way.  We  believe  that  every  soldier  here  introduced 
is  a  portrait ;  the  picture  was  painted  under  the  supervision  of  Lord  George 
himself,  so  that  the  work  has  a  national  historic  interest,  being  in  every 
respect  trustworthy. 

Among  those  of  the  artist's  pictures  which  have  never  been  brought 
before  the  public  is  "A  Sister  of  Mercy" — belonging  to  Mr.  Bartrum,  of 
Bath.  It  is  engraved  here  as  an  example  of  really  good  arrangement  in  the 
grouping. 

We  can  scarcely  pay  Mr.  Barker  a  greater  compliment  than  we  have 
already  paid,  when  we  spoke  of  him  as  "  the  Horace  Vernet  of  England;  " 
certainly  he  remains  master  of  the  battle-field  among  our  artists  ;  yet  we  may 
express  a  hope  that  he  may  not  find  subjects  for  future  pictures  in  the  ranks 
of  the  British  armies,  wherever  else  he  may  search  for  them. 


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nORSLEY.  83 

John  Callcott  Horsley  was  born  at  Brompton  in  1817  :  at  the  beginning 
of  our  notice  of  Callcott  we  referred  to  the  nature  of  his  early  surroundings. 
Of  such  parentage,  and,  from  the  earliest  dawn  of  life,  breathing  as  it  were 
an  atmosphere  of  Art,  it  would  have  been  strange  indeed  if  a  child  so  circum- 
stanced had  not  grown  up  with  some  strong  predilection  in  favour  of  one  or 
other  of  those  professions  of  which  the  influences  surrounded  and  filled  his  home. 
His  taste  led  him  at  a  very  early  age  towards  drawing,  and  there  are  now,  in 
the  possession  of  his  family,  sketches  executed  by  him  when  only  eight  or 
nine  years  old,  that  are  regarded  as  very  creditable  for  so  young  a  hand, 
even  considering  the  advantages  which  the  boy-artist  possessed.  So  soon 
as  his  friends  determined  that  he  should  practise  painting  as  a  profession, 
he  was  placed,  by  his  uncle's  advice,  at  the  academy  conducted  by  Mr.  Sass. 
He  next  entered  the  schools  of  the  Royal  Academy,  where  he  passed  through 
the  usual  course  of  study,  and  gained  a  medal  for  his  drawings  from  the 
antique.  For  some  little  time  Horsley  was  undecided  as  to  the  precise  point 
to  which  his  future  efforts  should  be  directed ;  but  a  visit  paid  to  a  friend  in 
Derbyshire,  when  he  was  about  sixteen  years  of  age,  determined,  at  least  for  a 
considerable  period,  the  matter  to  his  own  satisfaction,  and  that  also  of  his 
friends.  During  his  stay  in  that  beautiful  and  picturesque  county  he  made 
a  number  of  sketches  of  Haddon  Hall — the  fine  old  mansion  which  has  for 
years  past  proved  as  attractive  to  our  "home"  painters  of  every  class  as 
the  Ducal  Palace  of  Venice  has  been  to  our  travelling  artists.  On  his 
return  to  London,  Horsley  completed  a  picture  which  he  called  "  Rent-day 
at  Haddon  Hall  in  the  time  of  Queen  Elizabeth,"  exhibited  at  the  British 
Institution.  This  work  was  most  favourably  criticized  in  the  journals  of  the 
day  ;  and  being  the  production  of  a  very  young  painter,  and  the  first  he 
had  exhibited,  his  name  became  known  in  the  Art-circles  of  the  metropolis  : 
Wilkie  alludes  to  the  picture  in  a  letter  published  after  his  death. 

The  scene  of  Horsley's  next  work,  "Winning  the  Game,"  was  also  laid 
at  Haddon  Hall  ;  it  was  a  view  of  one  of  the  apartments,  in  which  two  or 
three  groups  of  figures  are  introduced — some  elderly  people  playing  at  chess, 
and  some  young  folk  occupied  in,  to  themselves,  the  more  important  matter 
of  courtship.  After  this  followed,  at  the  British  Institution,  "Love's  Mes- 
senger," "  Youth  and  Age,"  "  Waiting  for  an  Answer,"  and  "  The  Rival  Per- 
formers ;  "  all  in  the  collection  presented  by  Mr.  Sheepshanks  to  the  nation. 
Having  thus  far  gone  through,  with  unusual  success,  the  ordeal  of  the 


84  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

British  Institution, — then  a  sort  of  probationary  exhibition-room  with  young 
artists,  though  the  works  of  the  veterans  were  also  to  be  seen  there, — 
Horsley,  in  1839,  sent  his  first  picture,  "The  Pride  of  the  Village,"  to  the 
Royal  Academy  :  it  was  bought  by  Mr.  Vernon  previously  to  its  public  exhi- 
bition, and  is  now  the  property  of  the  nation. 

In  1 84 1  Horsley  contributed  to  the  Royal  Academy  only  a  single 
painting — the  "Pedlar" — very  elaborately  executed  in  all  its  details.  In 
1842  he  also  sent  but  one  picture — "Winning  Gloves,"  a  title  significant 
enough  of  the  subject  to  all  who  know  how  gloves  are  lost  and  won  in 
moments  of  unconsciousness :  it  is  a  pretty  composition,  and  free  from 
affectation  or  vulgarity,  though  the  subject  is  below  the  powers  of  this  artist. 

When,  in  1842,  the  Royal  Commission  of  Fine  Arts  announced  their 
intention  of  awarding  premiums  to  those  artists  who  should  furnish  the 
most  suitable  cartoons  for  frescoes  for  the  proposed  decoration  of  the 
Houses  of  Parliament,  Horsley  entered  enthusiastically  into  the  arena  of 
honourable  artistic  rivalry,  and  almost  entirely  relinquished  his  practice  in 
oil-painting.  The  cartoon  exhibition  was  opened  in  Westminster  Hall  in 
.July,  1843,  and  to  his  drawing  of  "  St.  Augustine  preaching  to  Ethelbert 
and  Bertha,  his  Christian  Queen,"  was  awarded  one  of  the  second-class 
prizes  of  ^200 — a  distinction  rightly  earned  by  the  generally  effective  cha- 
racter of  the  composition,  and  the  powerful  and  truthful  expression  given 
to  the  individual  figures.  In  the  following  year  the  exhibition  of  frescoes 
took  place  in  the  same  edifice,  when  Mr.  Horsley  contributed  two — 
"Prayer,"  illustrated  by  the  head  and  bust  of  a  female  figure;  and 
"Peace,"  a  full-length  female  figure,  "white-robed,"  pressing  a  dove  to 
her  bosom,  and  offering  the  olive  branch,  with  a  lion  and  a  lamb  at  her 
feet — a  more  beautiful  allegorical  conception  we  scarcely  remember  to 
have  seen,  even  from  the  hands  of  those  foreign  artists  who,  in  such  works, 
are  allowed  to  have  pre-eminence  over  our  own.  The  merits  of  this  pro- 
duction induced  the  Royal  Commissioners  to  select  its  author  as  one  of  the 
six  artists  whom  they  appointed  to  execute  each,  respectively,  an  especial 
cartoon,  with  reference  to  its  being  reproduced  in  the  House  of  Lords,  and 
a  sum  of  ^400  was  awarded  to  each  painter  for  his  work ;  but  there  was 
no  stipulation  that  he  would,  as  a  consequence,  be  finally  employed  on  the 
decorations  of  the  edifice.  The  subject  given  to  him  was  "  Religion,"  which, 
according  to  the  title  appended  to  his  work  when  exhibited,  with  a  large 


HENRY    V.    WHEN    I'RINCE    OF    WALES. 
From  a  Painting  hy  John  Calkott  Horsley,  R.A. 


H  O  R  S  L  E  Y.  8s 

number  of  others,  in  1845,  at  Westminster,  was,  "  Exemplified  in  the  Faith 
and  Hope  of  the  Cross  of  Christ,  in  the  subjection  of  all  earthly  power  and 
human  distinctions  to  His  Will,  and  in  the  common  dependence  of  all  estates 
and  conditions  of  men  on  His  word."  It  must  suffice  for  us  to  state  that  a 
fresco  of  this  subject  ornaments  the  centre  compartment  facing  the  throne  in 
the  House  of  Peers. 

At  this  period  of  Mr.  Horsley's  history  he  held  for  two  years  the  appoint- 
ment of  one  of  the  head-masters  of  the  Government  School  of  Art,  to  which 
he  was  nominated  after  the  retirement  of  Air.  J.  R.  Herbert,  R.A. 

The  announcement  of  the  Royal  Commissioners,  issued  in  1846,  that 
artists  were  required  to  prepare  pictures  in  oil,  in  competition  for  places  in 
the  houses  of  legislature,  once  more  stirred  up  Horsley  to  enter  the  field  : 
he  contributed  the  fine  picture  that  forms  one  of  our  illustrations — "  Henr}^V. 
when  Prince  of  Wales."  The  subject  is  supplied  from  the  soliloquy  which 
Shakspere,  in  the  second  part  of  his  Henry  IV.,  causes  the  young  prince  to 
utter  when,  on  entering  the  bed-chamber  of  his  father,  he  takes  the  crown 
from  the  pillow  and  places  it  on  his  own  head,  supposing  that  the  sleep  into 
which  the  monarch  has  fallen  is  the  sleep  of  death.  One  of  the  three  prizes 
of  ^200  each  was  awarded  to  Horsley  for  this  work — a  distinction  which  all 
who  saw  it  admitted  it  to  merit. 

These  national  competitions  seem  to  have  awakened  in  the  mind  of 
Horsley  a  desire  to  employ  his  time  almost  exclusively  upon  historical  art 
adapted  to  public  edifices ;  we  find  him  engaged  with  a  gentleman  to  execute 
in  a  parish  church  in  Devonshire,  which  was  being  restored,  some  paintings 
in  fresco  of  subjects  from  sacred  history.  Unfortunately,  after  the  artist  had 
occupied  considerable  time  in  designs  and  preparations,  the  idea  had  to  be 
given  up  owing  to  the  sudden  conversion  of  his  patron  to  the  Romish 
faith. 

The  only  other  works  in  fresco  of  which  we  have  to  speak  are — "  Satan 
whispering  Evil  Dreams  into  the  Ear  of  Eve,"  in  the  Hall  of  Poets,  in  the 
Houses  of  Parliament,  and  two  paintings  illustrating  passages  in  the  life  of 
Alfred  the  Great,  executed  at  Summerleyton,  the  mansion  of  Sir  Morton  Peto. 
Entertaining  but  slender  hope  of  this  department  of  Art  taking  deep  root  in 
the  tastes  of  the  British  public,  of  its  being  adopted  in  ecclesiastical  decoration, 
or  that  it  would  be  carried  out  by  the  Government  to  any  considerable  extent 
in  the  proposed  adornment  of  the  houses  of  legislature,  Mr.  Horsley  turned 


86  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

back  reluctantly,  yet  resolutely,  to  his  easel  and  canvas  and  his  oils,  though 
he  had  not  altogether  relinquished  them  when  occupied  with  his  frescoes. 

Mr.  Horsley's  relative,  Sir  A.  W.  Callcott,  having,  at  his  decease,  left 
unfinished  a  picture  of  "  Launce  reproving  his  Dog,"  it  was  finished  by  the 
former,  and  exhibited  under  his  name  at  the  British  Institution  in  1850.  We 
must  not  omit  to  mention  that  the  eminent  engineer  I.  K.  Brunei  was  Horsley's 
brother-in-law ;  a  portrait  of  him  by  the  artist  appeared  in  the  Academy  of 
1848.  The  "Scene  from  'Don  Quixote,'"  one  of  our  engravings,  repre- 
sents the  picture  which  gained  Mr.  Horsley  his  first  step  in  the  honours  of  the 
Academy ;  it  shows  how  the  curate,  the  barber,  the  housekeeper,  and  her 
niece  have  entered  into  a  conspiracy  to  dismantle  the  shelves  of  the  knight, 
while  he  is  asleep  in  an  adjoining  apartment,  of  the  books  which  they  consider 
to  have  been  the  means  of  "setting  Don  Quixote  beside  his  senses."  The 
curate  is  reading  one  of  the  volumes  with  mock  gravity,  the  barber  and  the 
young  female  take  down  others  and  hand  them  to  the  housekeeper,  who  flings 
them  out  of  the  window.  In  1863  appeared  a  firmly  painted  and  very  charac- 
teristic work,  "  The  Morning  of  St.  Valentine."  His  diploma  picture  in  1866 
was  "  A  Pleasant  Corner."  A  large  piece  for  St.  Thomas's  Hospital, 
London,  engaged  much  of  his  time  about  1873  and  1874;  he  managed, 
however,  to  contribute  to  the  Academy  "  Stolen  Glances  "  in  the  former  year, 
and  "Sunny  Effects"  in  the  latter.  In  1877  he  had  in  the  exhibition  "  The 
World  Forgetting,"  and  "Critics  on  Costume — Fashions  Change;  "  in  1878 
"Cupboard  Love,"  and  "The  Salute."  He  now  passes  his  time  between 
Kensington  and  his  residence  at  Willesley,  near  Cranbrook,  Kent.  His  son, 
Mr.  Walter  Charles  Horsley,  has  inherited  his  father's  power  of  careful 
elaboration  and  is  a  constant  exhibitor  at  Burlington  House. 

A  careful  examination  of  the  works  of  this  artist  must  convince  the 
observer  that  he  produces  nothing  on  which  the  utmost  care  and  study  has 
not  been  bestowed.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  any  impediment  stood  in  the 
way  of  his  devoting  his  attention  to  subjects  of  high  historical  character, 
and  more  particularly  to  sacred  subjects,  suited  to  church  decoration.  We 
should  not  in  all  probability  have  seen  from  his  pencil  compositions  that 
might  vie  with  those  of  Cornelius,  Bendemann,  Vos,  Kaulbach,  Wach,  Begas, 
and  other  great  masters  of  the  German  school ;  but  we  might  reasonably 
have  looked  for  works  of  great  interest,  and  manifesting  high  feeling  united 
with  skilful  execution— works  that  would  evidence  a  pure  mind  and  a  ready 


GILBERT.  87 

pencil.  Thrown  back  upon  such  subjects  as  the  taste  of  the  public  demands, 
he  brings  to  his  labours  all  those  qualities  of  Art  that  are  calculated  to 
produce  the  most  satisfactory  result — pleasing  imagination,  truthful  drawing, 
vivid  colouring,  effective  chiaroscuro,  and,  when  the  subject  demands  it,  great 
elaboration  :  his  works  are  comparatively  few,  but  they  are  valuable. 


In  discussing  the  life  and  works  of  Sir  John  Gilbert  we  are  about  to 
consider  him  in  his  threefold  character  of  an  oil  painter,  a  water-colour 
painter,  and  an  "  artist  on  wood;  "  that  is  to  say,  we  shall  notice  him  under 
each  of  the  divisions  into  which  we  have  classed  his  works. 

John  Gilbert  was  born  at  Blackheath,  in  the  county  of  Kent,  in  1817.  His 
early  love  of  Art,  as  well  as  his  proficiency,  was  manifested  when  a  boy  at 
school  by  his  carrjang  off  all  the  prizes  for  drawing,  and,  as  we  have  heard 
him  say,  by  his  neglect  of  all  other  studies ;  for  what  interest  could  a  lad  who 
was  never  happy  if  he  had  not  a  pencil  in  his  hand  find  in  geography  or 
grammar,  or  working  out  an  arithmetical  question  or  geometrical  problem  ? 
When  school-days  were  over  he  was  placed  in  the  office  of  a  "  man  of 
business"  in  the  City,  where  he  not  unfrequently  got  into  trouble  with  his 
principals  by  employing  his  time  in  sketching  all  over  the  papers  in  the  office, 
thus  giving  to  the  place  anything  but  a  commercial  aspect.  Here  he  remained 
two  years,  in  a  most  uncongenial  employment ;  at  the  expiration  of  this  time 
his  friends  withdrew  him  from  the  office-desk. 

Having  determined  to  become  an  artist,  he  made  great  exertions  to  enter 
the  Academy  schools  as  a  student,  but,  notwithstanding  the  encouragement  he 
received  from  his  kind  friend  Sir  W.  Beechey,  R.A.,  all  efforts  to  gain  admission 
were  unsuccessful.  As  many  other  artists  have  done  when  unable  to  secure 
whatever  benefit  schools  of  Art  have  to  offer,  he  set  to  work  to  teach 
himself. 

To  aid  him  in  the  acquisition  of  theoretical  knowledge, — as,  for  example, 
the  principles  of  composition,^ — he  studied  eagerly  and  closely  Reynolds's 
"Discourses,"  and  Burnet's  "Hints  on  Painting;"  but  feeling  that  colour 
required  other  instruction  than  what  books,  however  excellent,  were  able  to 
supply,  he  looked  about  for  some  artist  whose  experience  might  initiate  him 
into  its  mysteries  ;  such  a  guide  he  found  in  Mr.  George  Lance,  the  eminent 
fruit-painter,    from  whom    he    received    most   valuable    instruction.       These 


88  B  R  I  1  I  S  H    P  A  I N  T  E  R  S. 

lessons,  from  one  of  our  greatest  colourists,  given  at  a  time  when  the  pupil 
was  ripe  to  receive  them,  proved  of  the  highest  service  to  the  student. 

Mr.  Gilbert  must  have  been  about  eighteen  or  twenty  years  of  age  when 
he  made  his  first  appearance  as  an  exhibitor  by  sending  to  the  Suffolk  Street 
Gallery  a  water-colour  painting,  the  subject  of  which  was  "  Richard,  Duke  of 
Gloucester,  arresting  Lord  Hastings  at  the  Council  in  the  Tower."  It  met 
with  a  purchaser,  and  the  artist's  good  fortune  animated  him  to  future  efforts. 
In  1838  he  sent  a  "Portrait"  to  the  Royal  Academy,  and  in  1841,  "Holbein 
painting  the  Portrait  of  Anne  Boleyn  ;  "  but  the  picture  which  first  attracted 
our  attention  was  one  hung  at  the  British  Institution  in  the  same  year,  the 
subject,  "  Don  Quixote  giving  advice  to  Sancho  Panza  upon  entering  on  his 
Government." 

Another  subject  from  Don  Quixote  was  exhibited  at  the  British  Institution 
in  1842,  "  The  Duke  promising  Sancho  the  Government  of  an  Island,"  which 
quite  equalled,  if  it  did  not  surpass,  the  former. 

In  1845  Gilbert  quitted  for  a  time  the  territory  of  Spanish  romance,  and 
turned  over  the  pages  of  English  history  as  Shakspere  has  dramatised  them. 
One  of  his  two  pictures  in  the  British  Institution  was  a  "  Scene  from  King 
Henry  VIII.,'"  where  the  Duke  of  Norfolk  demands  from  Wolsey  the  Chan- 
cellor's seal:  in  this  work  red  is  the  ascendant  colour,  almost  to  a  fault,  but 
the  incident  is  forcibly  related  in  the  grouping  and  expression  of  the  figures. 
In  the  Academy  we  saw  "  King  Henry  IV.,"  a  richly-coloured  picture 
representing  the  monarch  repeating  the  soliloquy — 

"  Canst  thou,  O  partial  Sleep !  give  thy  repose 
To  the  wet  sea-boy  in  an  hour  so  rude  ?  "  &c. 

In  1850  he  contributed  three  pictures  to  the  British  Institution  :  — a  large 
composition,  wherein  are  introduced  the  principal  characters  of  Shakspere, 
each  so  faithfully  personified  that  we  have  no  difficulty  in  recognising  them 
all;  another,  "  A  Troop  of  Dragoons  "  on  their  march,  in  a  storm  of  rain — 
a  clever  and  most  truthful  sketch,  which  we  have  engraved ;  and  a  study 
of  a  negro's  head,  drawn  in  profile,  to  which  the  artist  gave  the  fanciful  title 
of  "Aladdin's  Present  to  the  Sultan."  In  the  Academy  he  had,  half  hidden 
in  the  octagon  room,  a  very  beautiful  work,  careful  in  detail  and  finish, 
"  Touchstone  and  the  Shepherd  in  the  Forest  of  Arden." 

"Don  Sancho  Panza,  Governor  of  Barataria,"  exhibited  at   the  British 


<  t 

o  ■= 

Pi  "f 

Q  .I' 

3  § 


SANCHO    PANZA. 

From  a  Faulting  ly  Sir  John  Gilbert,  R.A. 


GILBERT.  89 

Institution  in  185 1,  is  another  of  the  works  of  this  artist,  selected  by  us  as 
examples  of  his  style, — it  would  have  been  a  positive  absurdity  to  think  of 
"illustrating"  a  biography  of  Sir  John  Gilbert  without  a  specimen  of  his 
Quixotic  inclinations;  his  Don  Sancho  is  a  capital  picture,  faithful  to  the 
humorous  character  given  by  the  novelist.  Very  different  in  subject  and  in 
feeling  is  "  The  Destruction  of  Job's  Flock,"  in  the  Academy  exhibition  of 
the  same  year, — a  picture  fully  sustaining  the  reputation  of  the  artist  as  an 
original  and  varied  thinker,  quite  as  capable  of  treating  powerfully  and 
appropriately  the  narratives  of  Scripture  as  those  of  fiction  or  of  the  dramatic 
historian. 

As  if  for  the  purpose  of  showing  his  versatility  of  thought,  he  sent  to  the 
British  Institution,  in  1852,  two  paintings  which  might  not  unaptly  pass, 
relatively  to  each  other,  as  emblematic  of  "Peace"  and  "War;  "  one,  the 
"Charge  of  Prince  Rupert's  Cavalry  at  the  Battle  of  Naseby,"  so  full  of 
spirit  and  movement  that  we  fancy  we  hear  the  trampling  of  the  host  of  iron- 
heeled  chargers  as  they  rush  up  the  high  ground ;  the  other,  a  small  picture, 
graceful  in  arrangement  and  brilliant  in  display,  of  "  Her  Majesty  the  Queen 
holding  a  Drawing-room  at  St.  James's  Palace." 

A  picture  entitled  "A  Spanish  Landscape  and  Figures,"  which  was 
exhibited  at  the  British  Institution  in  1853,  presents  a  rich  combination  of 
colours  harmoniously  disposed,  and  a  masterly  grouping  of  the  figures — a 
Spanish  peasant,  his  wife  and  child,  the  two  last  mounted  on  an  ass  led  by 
the  man.  This  work,  we  believe,  has  been  reproduced,  in  chromo-litho- 
graphy,  for  the  Art  Union  of  Glasgow.  In  1854  he  sent  to  the  same  gallery 
"  Sancho  Panza  informing  his  Wife  of  his  coming  Dignity,  and  of  his  intention 
to  make  his  Daughter  a  Countess,"  a  composition  in  which  the  assumed  gravity 
of  the  expectant  Governor  of  Barataria  is  admirably  represented.  We  should 
be  well  pleased  to  see  an  illustrated  edition  of  "Don  Quixote"  from  the 
hand  of  Gilbert,  whose  mind,  through  his  pencil,  enters  so  completely  into 
the  spirit  of  the  story  ;  the  book  could  not  fail  of  being  popular  :  why  has  it 
never  been  undertaken  ? 

Noticeable  amongst  his  works  contributed  to  the  Royal  Academy  are : 
"Rembrandt,"  in  1867;  "Charles  I.  leaving  Westminster  Hall  after  the 
Sentence  of  Death  had  been  passed,"  in  1872,  in  which  year  he  at  last  became 
an  A.R.A.  ;  and  the  "Field  of  the  Cloth  of  Gold,"  in  1874.  "Cardinal 
Wolsey  at  Leicester  Abbey,"  and   "  The  Doge  and  Senators  of  Venice  in 

N 


go 


BRITISH    PAINTERS. 


Council,"  were  his  contributions  in    1877,  when  he  attained   the  honour  of 
Royal  Academician. 

We  now  turn  to  the  artist's  water-colours.  He  was  elected  Associate 
Exhibitor  of  the  Society  of  Painters  in  Water-Colours  in  1852,  and  Member  in 
the  year  following ;  and  none  can  doubt  that  it  gained  considerable  accession 
of  strength  by  his  election,  and  especially  in  a  department  of  Art  that  required 
new  and  vigorous  blood  infused  into  it. 

The  identity  of  Gilbert's  water-colour  pictures  with  those  he  has  executed 
in  oil  is  manifest  in  the  powerful  expression  of  character,  brilliant  colouring, 
effective  composition,  and  substantial  execution,  and  in  similarity  of  subject ; 
but  his  style  of  execution  differs — it  is  far  more  elaborated,  and  it  seems  to 
be  the  result  of  his  constant  occupation  in  drawing  upon  wood  ;  his  manipula- 
tion is  characterized  by  what  is  known  in  wood-engraving  as  "  cross-hatching," 
that  is,  by  intersecting  lines.  There  is,  however,  no  evidence  of  feebleness 
of  touch,  nor  of  want  of  vigour  in  any  way;  the  result  is  altogether  satis- 
factory. The  most  important  of  his  water-colour  pictures  are  "  Richard, 
Duke  of  Gloucester,  and  his  two  Murderers  "  (1852) ;  "  Richard  II.  resigning 
his  Crown  to  Bolingbroke  "  (1853)  ;  "  The  Standard-Bearer,"  a  noble  figure, 
worthy  of  Velasquez,  and  "  Her  Majesty  the  Queen  inspecting  the  Wounded 
Coldstream  Guards  in  the  Hall  of  Buckingham  Palace"  (1856).  He  was 
knighted  by  the  Queen  in  1872,  and  has  been  President  of  the  Society  of 
Painters  in  Water-Colours  for  some  years.  Some  of  his  works  appeared  at 
the  Paris  Exposition  of  1878. 

Having  thus  noticed  the  works  of  Sir  John  Gilbert  in  oil  and  water-colour, 
it  remains  for  us  to  speak  of  him  as  an  "artist  on  wood."  It  is  necessary 
to  go  back  several  years  of  his  life  to  acquaint  the  reader  with  Gilbert's  first 
essay  as  "a  wood-draftsman;"  in  fact,  to  his  earliest  appearance  as  an 
exhibitor.  A  series  of  pen-and-ink  sketches  he  had  made  for  his  amusement 
was  shown  by  a  common  friend  to  Mr.  Sheepshanks,  to  whom  the  nation  is  so 
largely  indebted  for  his  munificent  gift  of  pictures,  and  who  then  resided  at 
Blackheath,  where  the  artist  also  lived.  Mr.  Sheepshanks  suggested  to 
Gilbert  the  desirableness  of  his  turning  his  attention  to  drawing  on  wood 
designs  for  illustrating  books.  Acting  upon  the  suggestion,  he  completed 
a  set  of  drawings  to  illustrate  "Nursery  Rhymes;  "  but  his  st3'le  of  pen- 
cilling differed  so  much  from  all  preceding  and  contemporaneous  drawings 
that  the  engravers  were  at  first  puzzled  not  a  little  to  know  how  to  render 


D  O  B  S  O  lY.  91 

them  ;  for  we  should  tell  the  uninitiated  of  our  readers  that  it  is  not  every 
drawing  which  looks  well  on  the  wood  that  will  "cut  well,"  to  use  a 
technical  term.  Gilbert's  success  in  this  work  brought  him  into  good  repute 
with  the  book-publishers,  and  he  was  soon  engaged  on  a  variety  of  publica- 
tions; he  also  undertook  and  carried  through  an  elaborate  series  of  chrono- 
logical designs  of  English  history,  which  were  reproduced  in  lithography. 

When  the  Illustrated  London  News  was  projected,  in  1842,  the  proprietors 
applied  to  Gilbert  for  his  aid ;  he  commenced  with  the  first  number  of  that 
paper,  by  contributing  a  set  of  drawings  to  illustrate  the  Oweeia' s  Bal  Masque. 
We  may  remark,  with  reference  to  these  wood-drawings,  that,  notwithstanding 
his  unwearied  industry,  he  never  could  have  got  through  the  prodigious 
amount  of  work  placed  in  his  hands,  if  he  had  not  been  exceedingly  rapid  in 
his  execution.  He  very  rarely  makes  any  previous  sketch  of  his  subject,  but 
at  once  proceeds  to  draw  it  on  the  wood,  as  if  it  were  a  matter  he  had  long 
thought  over  and  studied. 


High  up  in  the  list  of  the  present  historical  painters  is  jNIr.  Dobson. 
He  was  born  in  1 817,  in  the  city  of  Hamburg,  where  his  father,  an  English- 
man, was  for  many  years  engaged  as  a  merchant :  circumstances,  however, 
compelled  him,  in  1826,  to  come  to  London  with  his  family.  Not  very  long 
after  their  return  thither,  his  son  commenced  the  study  of  Art  by  drawing 
in  the  British  Museum,  and  subsequently  was  admitted  into  the  schools  of 
the  Royal  Academy.  His  first  lessons  in  painting  were  received  from  Mr. 
Edward  Opie,  of  Plymouth,  nephew  of  the  late  John  Opie,  R.A.  ;  but  about 
the  year  1835,  ^  special  introduction  to  Sir  C.  L.  Eastlake  procured  for  him, 
during  many  years,  the  advantage  of  the  president's  instruction  and  advice : 
these  were  given  gratuitously, — indeed.  Sir  Charles,  we  believe,  never  took 
pupils,  in  the  ordinary  acceptation  of  the  term  ;  the  assistance  rendered  to 
Mr.  Dobson  was  given  out  of  kindness,  and  from  the  interest  felt  in  the 
success  of  the  young  artist,  who  has  always  expressed  himself  with  gratitude 
for  the  favour  bestowed  on  him. 

In  1843  he  accepted  the  appointment  of  head  master  of  the  Birmingham 
School  of  Design.  This  post  he  occupied  two  years,  resigning  it  in  order 
to  prosecute  his  studies  in  Italy :  on  his  retirement  the  pupils  presented 
him  with  a  piece  of  plate,  in  acknowledgment  of  the  value  of  his  services. 


92  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Faithful  to  his  Alma  Mater,  Mr.  Dobson's  pictures  have  been  contri- 
buted only  to  the  exhibitions  of  the  Royal  Academy,  except  when  they  were 
transferred  thence  to  some  one  or  other  of  the  provincial  galleries.  His 
earliest  exhibited  work  was  a  subject  from  Parnell's  poem  of  "The 
Hermit;"  it  belongs  to  the  date  1842.  In  the  following  year  he  sent  two 
portraits,  and  a  scene  from  "Paul  and  Virginia,"  the  latter  a  single  figure, 
but  one  characterized  by  considerable  taste.  In  1845  he  went  to  Italy; 
the  first  result  of  his  visit  was  seen  in  1846,  when  he  exhibited  "  A  Young 
Italian  Goatherd."  In  the  following  year  he  was  absent  from  the  Royal 
Academy ;  but  to  the  exhibition  held  in  Westminster  Hall,  under  the  auspices 
of  "Her  Majesty's  Commissioners  of  the  Fine  Arts,"  he  sent  two  pictures, 
one  being  "  Lamentation,"  a  composition  evidently  suggested  by  Herod's 
decree  concerning  the  young  Hebrew  children.  The  second  picture  referred 
to  was  "  Boadicea  meditating  Revenge  against  the  Romans:"  this  also 
bore  evidence  of  great  power  of  conception,  and  of  skilful  and  judicious 
treatment. 

In  1850  he  ventured  upon  new  ground,  and  commenced  that  series  of 
pictures  which  may  almost  come  under  the  denomination  of  "  Sacred  Art;  " 
some  of  them,  indeed,  fully  justify  such  a  title :  it  is  this  class  of  works 
which  has  placed  Mr.  Dobson  in  the  high  position  he  now  occupies.  The 
earliest  of  these  works,  exhibited  in  the  year  just  mentioned,  were,  a 
"Portrait  of  a  Lady,  as  St.  Cecilia,"  "The  Virgin  Mary  and  the  Child 
Jesus,"  and  "  St.  John  the  Evangelist,"  all  of  them  productions  of  great 
merit,  both  as  regards  feeling  and  artistic  execution  ;  the  second  of  the 
three  named  is  treated  after  the  manner  of  the  early  Italian  painters,  with 
some  of  whom  it  will  bear  a  very  favourable  comparison.  "  St.  John  leading 
the  Virgin  to  his  Home  after  the  Crucifixion,"  exhibited  in  the  following 
year,  is  a  composition  distinguished  by  deep  pathos,  and  shows  that  the 
artist's  visit  to  the  galleries  of  Italy  had  exercised  a  powerful  and  beneficial 
influence  on  his  mind. 

In  1853  Mr.  Dobson  exhibited  two  pictures,  one,  "  Tobias,  with  Raphael, 
his  Guardian-angel,  on  their  Journey  to  Medea,"  is  in  the  possession  of 
Mr.  Eden,  of  Preston.  The  two  figures,  habited  as  pilgrims,  are  ascending 
a  gentle  acclivity :  the  head  of  young  Tobias  is  exquisitely  tender  in 
expression,  but  Raphael  is  scarcely  an  "angelic  vision,"  though  the  work 
approaches  the  character  of  those  now  generally  known  as  Raffaclksque.     The 


THE   CHAKllY    UF   DUKCAS. 
Fy07n  a  Painting  hy  William  Charles  Thomas  DoVscn,  R.A. 


D  0  n  S  0  lY.  gj 

artist  is  quite  content  to  come  a//er  him  of  Urbino,  and  cares  not  to  look 
farther  back  in  the  catalogue  of  painters  for  a  model  of  imitation  :  in  doing 
this  he  acts  wisely  and  well.  The  second  picture,  called  the  "  Chorister," 
was  unfortunately  placed  in  the  octagon  room,  and  in  a  light  that  precluded 
any  satisfactory  judgment  upon  it. 

"The  Charity  of  Dorcas,"  engraved  in  this  work,  was  exhibited  in 
1854,  and  belonged  to  Mr.  Lewis  Pocock,  one  of  the  secretaries  of  the 
Art  Union  of  London.  It  is  a  work  of  an  elevated  character,  perhaps 
showing  a  little  too  much  of  the  appearance  of  an  argumcnium  ad  miseri- 
cordiam  in  the  condition  of  the  destitute  to  be  altogether  agreeable,  yet  still 
it  must  be  regarded  as  the  emanation  of  a  mind  seeking  to  inculcate  a  holy 
lesson  in  a  most  attractive  form  ;  and  the  picture  is  one  its  owner  may  well 
feel  proud  in  possessing.  We  presume  it  was  in  consequence  of  the  Queen 
seeing  this  picture  in  the  Academy  that  Mr.  Dobson  had  the  honour  of 
receiving  a  commission  from  her  Majesty  to  execute  a  similar  subject :  this, 
which  was  exhibited  in  the  following  year,  received  the  title  of  "  The  Alms- 
deeds  of  Dorcas." 

The  success  attending  these  two  productions  induced  the  artist,  in  1856, 
to  exhibit  another  of  a  like  character ;  but  this  time,  instead  of  Dorcas,  the 
principal  personage  in  the  scene  is  Job,  ere  the  Chaldeans  and  Sabeans  had 
stripped  him  of  his  possessions,  the  hurricane  from  the  wilderness  had  left 
him  childless,  and  the  hand  of  Satan  smitten  his  body  with  a  loathsome 
disease.  The  picture,  which  bears  the  title  of  "The  Prosperous  Days  of 
Job,"  represents  the  patriarch,  as  he  describes  himself,  "  a  father  to  the 
poor,"  visiting  the  sick  and  offering  consolation  to  the  afflicted:  he  is  sur- 
rounded by  numerous  candidates  for  his  sympathy  and  benevolence.  The 
grouping  is  very  masterly,  and  the  varied  expressions  of  the  faces  dis- 
tinctly declare  the  sufferings  of  the  necessitous.  The  colouring  is  remark- 
ably rich  and  brilliant ;  too  much  so,  perhaps,  in  the  draperies,  for  the 
condition  of  the  wearers  :  their  garments,  though  tattered,  appear  made  of 
new  material.  In  another  room  there  hung,  at  the  same  time,  what  we 
have  always  considered  the  most  important  work  this  artist  has  produced : 
it  is  called  "The  Parable  of  the  Children  in  the  Market-Place,"  and  was 
purchased  by  Messrs.  Henry  Graves  &  Co.,  we  believe  for  the  purpose 
chiefly  of  having  it  engraved — and  a  very  charming  subject  it  is  for  a 
print.     The  whole  composition  is  full  of  appropriate  subject,  deeply  studied. 


94 


BRITISH    PAINTERS. 


and  most  carefully  carried  out :  a  picture  of  undoubtedly  high  character,  and 
one  of  the  best  in  the  Academy  exhibition  of  that  year. 

"Reading  the  Psalms"  has  come  into  public  notice  principally  through 
the  engraving  by  S.  Cousins,  R.A.  ;  it  now  belongs,  we  believe,  to  the 
Baroness  Burdett  Coutts.  We  know  few  pictures  of  modern  Art,  of  the 
same  class,  that  so  powerfully  and  feelingly  express  the  guilelessness  of 
childhood  as  does  this.  "  The  Child  Jesus  going  down  with  His  Parents 
to  Nazareth,"  forms  one  of  our  illustrations;  the  purity  and  sweetness  of 
this  work,  with  its  exquisite  colour  and  the  chastity  of  its  expression,  render 
it  a  production  of  rare  excellence. 

Mr.  Dobson  became  an  Associate  of  the  Royal  Academy  in  1859,  and  at 
about  the  same  period  made  a  stay  of  several  months  in  Dresden.  Consider- 
able as  the  effect  of  the  study  of  German  Art  has  been  on  many  of  his  later 
productions,  it  is  quite  an  open  question  whether  the  alteration  has  taken 
place  in  the  best  direction.  Palgrave,  in  "  Essays  on  Art,"  speaking  of  1864, 
says,  "  Mr.  Dobson  seems  to  have  shown  some  advance  this  year  towards  a 
larger  style.  While  prettiness  holds,  as  it  always  will  hold,  its  place  in  Art, 
we  can  hardly  ask  for  prettier  faces  and  attitudes  than  his  two  fiiir  damsels 
with  their  flowers  and  their  books." 

The  most  noticeable  of  his  pictures  of  late  years  are,  "  Train  up  a  child  in 
the  way  he  should  go,"  exhibited  in  i860  ;  "  The  Child  Jesus  in  the  Temple," 
in  1866;  "A  Crown  to  her  Husband,"  in  1S72  ;  "Rebecca,"  in  1876;  and 
"Mother  and  Child,"  in  1878.  We  must  also  add  to  the  list  "Paul  at 
Philippi,"  a  work  of  considerable  power.  This  last  was  made  over  to  the 
Academy  on  his  becoming  an  Academician  in  1873.  Besides  this  he  is  also 
a  member  of  the  Society  of  Painters  in  Water-colours,  several  of  his  works  in 
this  department  appearing  in  the  Paris  Exposition  of  1878. 

It  is  scarcely  possible  to  look  at  any  of  Mr.  Dobson's  productions  without 
a  feeling  of  assurance  that  he  is  animated  by  the  highest  spirit  of  Art :  his 
aim  is  to  employ  it  for  the  best  purposes,  not  indirectly,  as  some  artists  do, 
but  openly  and  avowedly  to  make  it  a  great  teacher  of  that  which  is  true  and 
good.  He  has  that  within  him  which  ought  to  lead  to  higher  ground  than 
any  he  has  yet  taken,  and  which  would  fully  justify  any  pretension  of  such  a 
nature.  Our  school  is  lamentably  deficient  in  painters  oi  sacred  art ;  we  have 
an  abundance  of  genre  artists,  and  some  few  historical  ;  what  is  wanted  are 
men  who  will    be    to    the    Protestant  faith  what   Raffaelle,   Correggio,   the 


THE   CHILD  JESUS   GOING  DOWN   WIIH  HIS   PARENTS   TO   NAZARETH. 
From  a  Painting  by  William  Charles  T/wmas  Dcbson,  R.A. 


/■•  R  ]  r  If.  95 

Carracci,  and  others  before  and  after,  were  to  the  faith  of  the  Romish  Church. 
The  Pre-Raffaellites  of  the  day  are  not  the  men  for  such  work  ;  the  mind  of 
Mr.  Dobson,  and  his  style  of  painting,  are  adapted  to  the  requirements  of  the 
time  ;  his  imagination  can  take  in  a  wide  expanse  of  pure  and  noble  thoughts, 
without  treading  on  the  verge  of  eccentricity  :  his  compositions  are  effective 
and  graceful,  and  his  colouring  brilliant,  even  in  a  school  where  this  quality 
is  a  distinguishing  feature.  We  cannot  afford  to  see  such  a  painter  spending 
even  a  portion  of  his  time  upon  the  heads  of  little  children,  beautiful  as  these 
pictures  are ;  nor  can  we  desire  to  find,  as  some  of  his  pictures  have  shown, 
the  influence  of  the  German  school  pervading  his  works. 


Looking  at  the  histories  of  the  various  schools  of  painting  since  the  revival 
of  Art,  it  may  be  affirmed  without  much  fear  of  contradiction  that  not  one 
presents  a  parallel  case  of  rapid  improvement  to  our  own.  It  occupied  the 
Italians  three  centuries,  from  the  thirteenth  to  the  fifteenth,  to  develop  their 
school,  and  another  century  firmly  to  establish  it.  The  Spanish  school, 
commencing  about  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century,  reached  its  climax,  in 
the  works  of  Murillo  and  Velasquez,  towards  the  close  of  the  seventeenth. 
That  of  the  Flemings  and  Dutch,  which  bear  so  close  a  resemblance,  and 
therefore  may  be  coupled  together,  began  in  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth 
century,  and  attained  its  highest  point  about  the  end  of  the  seventeenth.  The 
foundation  of  the  French  school  was  laid  early  in  the  seventeenth  centur}-; 
and  though  it  has  at  present  neither  a  Nicholas  Poussin  nor  a  Claude,  it  can 
scarcely  be  said  to  be  on  its  decline. 

Fifty  years  have  sufficed  to  place  England  on  a  level  with  the  best  Art- 
epoch  of  the  Continent ;  for  if  we  have  not  produced  a  Raffaelle,  a  Guido,  or 
a  Leonardo  da  Vinci,  it  ought  to  be  borne  in  mind  that  we  have  exhibited  a 
greater  diversity  of  talent  and  more  originality  than  the  most  famous  schools 
of  Italy  ever  sent  forth.  Protestantism  effected  almost  as  wondrous  a  change 
in  Art  as  in  religious  forms  and  ceremonies.  It  opened  a  wider  field  for  the 
talents  of  the  painter ;  and  as  the  doctrines  of  Calvin  and  Luther  soon  spread 
over  the  Low  Countries,  there  arose  in  them  the  numerous  classes  of  land- 
scape and  gcurc  painters  who  have  served  more  or  less  as  models  for  those  of 
our  own  school. 

What  sacred  and  legendar)^  Art  suggested  to  the  schools  of  Italy,  the 


96  BRITISH     PAINTERS. 

manners  and  customs  of  their  country  to  those  of  Holland  and  Flanders,  our 
own  painters  have  found,  to  a  very  considerable  extent,  in  English  literature  ; 
less  perhaps  in  our  history  than  in  works  of  fiction,  much  of  which,  however, 
possesses  the  character  of  fact.  British  Art  has  drawn  largely,  though  not 
deeply,  from  the  writings  of  the  dramatist  and  the  novelist — so  largely  and  with 
such  constant  repetition  as  to  render  it  desirable  that  our  artists  should  seek 
elsewhere,  or  in  some  new  channel,  for  such  fountains  of  inspiration  as  they 
stand  in  need  of.  Our  prose  writers  and  our  poets  are  far  from  exhausted,  nor 
would  we  have  them  neglected,  but  we  should  like  to  see  the  treasure-hunter 
looking  deeper  than  the  surface,  and  into  springs  that  have  not  yet  lost  all 
their  freshness ;  or,  in  other  words,  if  their  reading  were  more  discursive  their 
pictures  would  exhibit  greater  originality.  Shakspere  and  Goldsmith,  Sterne, 
Scott,  and  Byron,  have  been  "  on  duty  "  during  the  last  quarter  of  a  century. 
It  is  quite  time  they  were  relieved.  We  do  not  intend  these  remarks  as  applic- 
able especially  to  the  artist  whose  works  we  are  about  to  introduce  to  the 
reader;  they  refer  to  owx  genre  painters  generally,  of  whom  Mr.  Frith  is  one,  but 
one  also  far  less  amenable  to  our  strictures  than  the  majority  of  his  compeers. 
William  Powell  Frith,  R.A.,  was  born  in  1819  at  Studley,  a  village  near 
Ripon,  in  Yorkshire.  His  father,  a  man  of  taste,  and  an  enthusiastic  lover  of 
Art,  encouraged  in  his  son  the  earliest  indications  of  the  talent  which  it  was 
evident  the  boy  possessed ;  every  opportunity  was  afforded  him  to  copy  the 
best  pictures  and  prints  that  came  within  reach,  and  thus  the  groundwork  of 
future  success  was  laid  without  any  of  those  obstacles  which  so  frequently 
impede  the  progress  of  the  young  artist.  The  father  desired  to  see  his  child 
grow  up  to  be  a  great  painter ;  the  prospect  of  his  arriving  at  excellence  was 
the  darling  hope  of  the  parent,  who,  unhappily,  did  not  live  to  witness  his 
success,  as  he  was  removed  by  death  when  the  lad  had  scarcely  reached  his 
sixteenth  year.  The  loss  did  not,  however,  affect  the  career  of  the  young 
artist;  he  continued  his  elementary  studies,  and  in  1835  was  placed  in  the 
Art  academy  in  Bloomsbury  Street,  then  conducted  by  Mr.  Sass,  and  now  by 
Mr.  F.  S.  Cary,  from  whose  schools  many  of  our  most  esteemed  painters,  and 
several  who  have  gained  distinguished  rank  at  the  Royal  Academy,  have 
come  forth.  During  the  three  years  Frith  continued  here,  his  aim  was  to 
perfect  himself  in  drawing  and  the  art  of  composition,  well  knowing  that  these 
must  ever  be  considered  the  primary  elements  of  a  good  artist.  To  colouring 
he  paid  comparatively  little  attention.     In  1839  he  exhibited  at  the  British 


FRITH.  97 

Institution  his  first  picture,  a  small  portrait  of  one  of  Mr.  Sass's  children, 
and  to  the  same  gallery,  in  the  following  year,  "Othello  and  Desdemona." 
Mr.  Frith  made  in  this  year  his  first  appearance  within  the  walls  of  the 
Academy  by  his  contribution  of  a  picture  representing  "  Malvolio  before  the 
Countess  Olivia,"  a  subject  which  Maclise  has  so  ably  portrayed  in  the 
picture  now  in  the  Vernon  collection.  Mr.  Frith's  solitary  contribution  to 
the  Academy  exhibition  of  1842  was  an  illustration  of  a  passage  from  one  of 
our  novelists — Goldsmith,  whose  "  Vicar  of  Wakefield"  has  perhaps  proved 
a  more  profitable  mine  of  wealth  to  the  painters  of  our  school  than  any  other 
tale  that  was  ever  written.  The  scene  he  selected  is  that  where,  at  the 
suggestion  of  Mrs.  Primrose,  Olivia  and  the  Squire  are  standing  up,  dos  a  dos, 
to  ascertain  which  is  the  taller.  Other  characters,  the  Vicar  and  the  younger 
members  of  his  family,  are  also  introduced  into  the  work,  forming  a  group  of 
exceeding  interest,  each  one  of  whom  seems  to  be  the  veritable  personage 
drawn  by  Goldsmith.  The  picture  was  purchased  on  the  day  of  opening  the 
exhibition. 

Of  the  two  pictures  sent  by  Frith  to  the  British  Institution  in  1843,  one — 
"  Dolly  Varden,"  from  Dickens's  "  Barnaby  Rudge" — is  too  well  known  by 
the  engraving  executed  from  it  to  require  description  ;  the  other,  the  "  Duel 
Scene,"  in  the  play  of  Twelfth  Night,  had  been  exhibited  the  preceding  year 
at  the  Gallery  of  the  Birmingham  Society  of  Artists,  where  it  soon  found  a 
purchaser. 

"Sterne  in  the  Shop  of  the  Grisette,"  is  the  title  of  a  little  picture 
exhibited  at  the  British  Institution  in  1845;  it  offers  some  valuable  artistic 
qualities,  but  must  not  be  compared  with  other  works  by  the  same  hand.  In 
the  Royal  Academy  he  had  a  "  Portrait"  of  a  young  lady,  sweet  and  elegant 
in  expression,  and  the  "Village  Pastor,"  which  has  been  engraved  on  a  large 
scale  by  F.  Holl,  and  is  deservedly  a  most  popular  print.  The  readers  of 
Goldsmith's  "Deserted  Village"  will  easily  recall  to  mind  the  lines  selected 
by  the  artist  for  illustration,  though  the  numerous  incidents  he  has  introduced 
into  the  composition  render  it  rather  the  epitome  of  the  entire  poem  than  the 
embodiment  of  a  solitary  passage.  The  picture  was  the  means  of  placing  the 
artist  on  the  roll  of  Associates  of  the  Royal  Academy,  to  which  he  was 
elected  in  the  autumn  of  the  year. 

In  1847  he  exhibited  at  the  Academy  the  largest  picture,  if  we  recollect 
rightly,  he  had  hitherto  painted — "  English  Merry-making  a  Hundred  Years 

o 


gS  BlilTISH    PAINTERS. 

ago,"  a  composition  of  numerous  rustic  figures,  appropriately  costumed  In 
the  dresses  of  the  period,  and  variously  engaged  in  making  holiday  under 
and  about  a  huge  tree  on  the  village-green. 

Of  all  the  pictures,  however,  which  this  artist  has  produced,  not  one  in 
our  opinion  surpasses,  for  originality  of  thought  and  powerful  treatment,  the 
first  on  the  list  of  three  exhibited  in  1848 — "An  Old  Woman  accused  of 
bewitching  a  Peasant  Girl,"  in  the  time  of  James  I.  The  scene  lies  in  an 
apartment  of  a  fine  old  mansion,  in  which  the  owner,  who  is  also  the  justice, 
sits  to  hear  the  accusation  ;  the  room  is  filled  with  numerous  individuals 
assembled  either  as  curious  spectators  or  as  persons  interested  in  the  case. 
To  describe  the  composition  in  detail  would  occupy  far  more  space  than  we 
can  allow  to  it ;  it  must  suffice  that  we  repeat  the  opinion  expressed  in 
a  critical  report  of  the  year,  that  it  is  a  work  exhibiting  "a  rare  combina- 
tion of  genius  and  industry."  The  reader  must  form  his  own  judgment 
from  the  engraving  we  give  of  the  scene  from  Moliere's  "  Bourgeois 
Gentilhomme,"  that  in  which  M.  Jourdain,  dressed  in  a  red  coat  trimmed 
with  gold  lace,  is  bowing  Dorimene  out  of  the  room :  the  costumes  and 
characters  of  the  two  figures  are  painted  with  undoubted  truth  and  vigour  of 
touch. 

We  admire  Mr.  Frith's  picture  of  1849 — "Coming  of  Age" — beyond 
many  of  his  other  productions  ;  it  carries  us  back  to  the  era  of  the  "  Virgin 
Queen,"  and  represents  the  eldest  scion  of  a  noble  house  standing  on  the 
steps  of  a  magnificent  baronial  mansion,  his  paternal  home,  and  surrounded 
by  his  family,  to  receive  the  congratulations  of  his  father's  tenantry,  for 
whom  a  substantial  repast  is  being  set  out  in  the  court-yard.  There  are 
upwards  of  sixty  figures  introduced  into  the  composition,  each  one  a 
character  carefully  studied,  and  sustaining  its  individuality  no  less  than  its 
presumed  right  to  be  present  on  such  an  occasion.  Many  of  our  readers  have 
doubtless  seen  Mr.  HoU's  fine  engraving  from  the  picture,  which  was 
presented  to  the  subscribers  to  the  Art  Union  of  Glasgow. 

In  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1850  Frith  exhibited  a  subject  from  "  Don 
Quixote,"  the  passage  of  the  narrative  which  describes  Sancho  as  telling  a 
tale  to  the  Duke  and  Duchess,  to  prove  that  the  Knight  of  La  Mancha  is  at 
the  bottom  of  the  table.  Sancho  is  placed  with  his  back  to  the  spectator, 
consequently  the  interest  of  the  composition  is  centred  in  the  figures  of  the 
Duke  and  Duchess  and  in  that  of  Don  Quixote,  who  is  rising  from  his  seat 


HOOK.  99 

as  if  to  address  his  host.  There  are  other  personages  introduced  into  the 
composition— the  Duke's  chaplain,  and  a  group  of  ladies-in-waiting;  the 
faces  of  the  latter,  as  in  all  Frith' s  pictures,  possessing  charms  enough  to 
woo  an  anchorite  from  his  cloister. 

In  1853  Mr.  Frith  was  elevated  to  the  full  honours  of  the  Academy;  two 
years  afterwards  he  exhibited  no  less  than  five  pictures,  the  most  attractive 
of  these  being  "  Life  at  the  Sea-side."  This  treats  a  delicate  subject  very 
happily,  with  a  clever  avoidance  of  caricature.  It  was  purchased,  when  on 
the  easel,  by  Messrs.  Lloyd  Brothers,  the  print  publishers,  but  when  the 
Queen  saw  it  on  visiting  the  Academy,  Her  Majesty  at  once  expressed  a 
desire  to  possess  it.  Messrs.  Lloyd,  hearing  of  the  fact,  relinquished  their 
title  to  the  work  under  conditions  not  unfavourable  to  themselves,  and  the 
picture  is  now  royal  property ;  the  Queen  allowing  Messrs.  Lloyd  to  have  it 
for  a  time,  that  it  might  be  engraved. 

The  year  1858  witnessed  the  completion  of  the  "Derby  Day,"  which 
there  can  be  no  hesitation  in  pronouncing  the  most  popular  of  the  artist's 
pieces ;  some  remarks  on  it  will  be  found  in  Modern  Painters :  it  is  now 
in  the  National  Gallery,  London.  For  "The  Railway  Station,"  exhibited  in 
1862,  he  received  no  less  than  ^9,000.  His  "  Marriage  of  the  Prince  of 
Wales"  was  painted  for  the  Queen  in  1865,  and  was  sent  by  her  Majesty  to 
the  Philadelphia  Centennial  Exhibition,  1876.  We  may  also  mention  two 
pictures  of  1870,  "  Sir  Roger  de  Coverley  and  the  Perverse  Widow,"  and 
"At  Homburg ;  "  "Breakfast  Time,"  contributed  to  the  Royal  Academy 
in  1873,  a  year  also  marked  by  two  striking  pictures  of  Flower  Girls  ;  and  in 
1876,  "The  Lovers'  Seat."  In  addition  to  working  in  his  own  special  line, 
Mr.  Frith  has  painted  many  portraits,  chiefly  of  popular  public  performers, 
such  as  Mrs.  Rousby,  Mr.  Sothern,  and  others.  His  "  Road  to  Ruin," 
exhibited  in  1878,  commanded  general  admiration. 


The  father  of  Mr.  Hook  held  an  important  Government  post  on  the  coast 
of  Africa,  where,  we  believe,  he  died  ;  his  grandfather  on  the  maternal  side 
was  Dr.  Adam  Clarke,  the  distinguished  biblical  commentator.  Mr.  Hook 
was  born  in  London  in  1819,  and  entered  the  schools  of  the  Royal  Academy 
at  an  early  age,  giving  proofs  of  his  industry  and  ability  by  gaining,  in  1843, 
for  the  best  copy  in  the  School  of  Painting,  the  silver  medal,  with  the  Lectures 


100  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

of  Professors  Barry,  Opie,  and  Fuseli,  and  the  silver  medal  for  the  best  draw- 
ing from  the  living-  model.  In  1846  he  had  awarded  to  him  the  gold  medal  of 
the  Academy,  with  the  Discourses  of  the  Presidents  Reynolds  and  West,  for 
the  best  historical  painting  in  oil  of  "  The  Finding  of  the  Body  of  Harold." 
We  are  accustomed  to  hear  outcries  and  complaints  against  the  Academy,  as 
an  institution  effecting  little  or  nothing  for  the  good  of  Art :  now,  admitting 
that,  in  comparison  with  many  of  the  Continental  schools,  it  does  not  offer 
such  advantages  as  the  country  has  a  right  to  look  for,  and  also  that  there  is 
much  in  it  requiring  a  radical  change,  it  cannot  be  denied  that  the  majority 
of  our  best  artists  have  been  educated  in  its  schools,  and  stimulated  to 
exertion  by  the  rewards  and  encouragements  it  holds  out  to  the  young 
student,  while  there  is  not  an  artist  in  the  kingdom  who  is  not  emulous  of 
being  associated  with  its  members,  not  because  the  privilege  necessarily 
stamps  its  possessor  as  one  among  our  greatest  artists,  but  because  he  is 
presumed  to  be,  by  those  who  are  looked  upon  as  the  best  judges  and  whose 
opinion  carries  weight  with  the  public,  worthy  of  the  distinction  ;  and  thus  the 
painter,  if  a  good  one,  and  conscious  of  his  own  deserts — for  few  men  are 
blind  to  their  merits  or  demerits — feels  that  his  talents  are  recognised  by  his 
professional  brethren;  if  a  bad  one,  the  cabalistic  letters  "R.A."  after  his 
name  give  him  a  position  he  would  never  attain  without  them,  and  are  at 
least  a  sign  of  presumptive  excellence,  and  bear  a  proportionate  value. 

Mr.  Hook  exhibited  his  first  work  at  the  Academy  exhibition  in  1839, 
i.e.  three  years  after  his  admission  to  the  schools  of  that  institution.  "  The 
Hard  Task  "  was  the  title  he  chose  for  this  earliest  essay.  In  1842,  the  year 
before  he  gained  the  silver  medals,  he  exhibited  a  portrait  of  a  youth,  and  in 
1844  an  incident  from  Boccaccio,  "  Pamphilus  relating  his  Story."  In  1846, 
the  year  wherein  the  gold  medal  was  awarded  to  him,  he  exhibited  another 
picture  of  good  promise,  "The  Controversy  between  Lady  Jane  Grey  and 
Father  Feckenham,  who  was  sent  to  her  from  Queen  Mary,  two  days  before 
her  death,  to  try  to  convert  her  to  Romanism  :  "  it  was  unfortunately  so 
ill-placed — in  the  room  usually  assigned  to  architectural  subjects — that  it  was 
impossible  to  judge  of  its  real  worth. 

Stimulated  no  doubt  by  his  success  in  the  competition  for  the  gold 
medal,  Mr.  Hook  essayed  in  1847  a  work  of  a  higher  order  than  any  he 
had  yet  attempted ;  for  it  will  scarcely  be  denied  that  subjects  from  sacred 
history,  however  much  they  approximate  in  character  to  the  ordinary  inci- 


HOOK.  loi 

dents  of  life,  require  a  more  elevated  style  of  treatment  than  any  other 
class  of  subject.  We  can  never  dissociate  from  the  mind  the  idea  that  the 
commonest  event,  if  such  a  term  may  be  employed  when  referring  to  biblical 
history,  which  is  therein  recorded,  is  separated  by  a  wide  line  of  demarca- 
tion from  what  may  occur  among  ourselves  ;  and  it  can  only  be  truly  repre- 
sented by  the  art  of  the  painter  when  he  feels  that  he  is  illustrating  a  passage 
of  sacred  history ;  it  must  be  treated  religiously  no  less  than  artistically. 
"  Rispah  watching  the  Dead  Sons  of  Saul,"  contributed  by  Mr.  Hook  to 
the  British  Institution,  is  a  difficult  subject  for  a  young  painter  to  grapple 
with  ;  Mr.  Hook  evidently  found  it  so,  but  the  work  displays  considerable 
skill  in  the  disposition  and  foreshortening  of  the  lifeless  figures,  and  a  know- 
led"-e  of  colourinar  in  the  distinction  between  the  flesh-tints  of  the  dead  and 
those  of  the  living. 

In  1849  Mr.  Hook  commenced  the  series  of  subjects,  for  we  scarcely 
can  include  his  picture  of  1847  among  the  number,  from  Venetian  history, 
real  and  fabled,  with  which  his  name  is  now  closely  identified :  he  sent  to 
the  British  Institution  a  painting  entitled  "Venice — 1550,"  illustrating  a 
presumed  period  in  the  annals  of  the  republic,  when,  as  the  poet  says,  the 
nobles — 

"  Did  please  to  play  the  thieves  for  wives." 

To  the  British  Institution,  in  1850,  Mr.  Hook  sent  "The  Chevalier 
Bayard  departing  from  Brescia,"  a  companion  picture  to  one  exhibited 
in  the  Academy  the  preceding  year  :  the  Chevalier  is  restored  to  health, 
and  is  preparing  to  go  forth  once  more  in  the  pursuit  of  new  honours ;  his 
groom  is  buckling  on  his  spurs,  and  the  ladies  to  whom  he  is  so  greatly 
indebted  for  their  careful  nursing,  present  him  at  parting  with  souvenirs  of 
their  companionship  during  the  days  of  sickness  and  suffering  ;  we  have 
always  considered  this  picture  one  of  the  most  charming  works  of  the  artist. 
In  the  autumn  of  this  year  Mr.  Hook  was  elected  an  Associate  of  the 
Academy. 

"  The  Rescue  of  the  Brides  of  Venice,"  exhibited  in  the  Academy  in  1851, 
was  among  the  chief  attractions  of  the  annual  collection  :  the  ladies  have 
been  captured  by  pirates,  who  are  surprised  at  Caorli,  while  dividing  their 
spoil,  by  the  young  nobles  of  Venice  and  their  retainers  :  there  is  a  sharp 
conflict  going  on  in  boats  ;  the  great  object  of  the  rescuers,  next  to  the 
liberation  of  the  captives,  is  to  protect  them  from  the  dangers  oi  the  encounter. 


loz  '  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

The  scene  is  full  of  excitement ;  the  grouping  of  the  figures  is  good,  the 
general  design  most  artistic,  and  it  is  carried  out  in  all  its  details  with  vigour 
and  great  ability.  His  second  picture  of  this  year,  "  The  Defeat  of  Shylock," 
is  the  "pound  of  flesh  "  scene  from  Othello  ;  the  characters  here  brought  into 
view  are  presented  with  a  just  discrimination  of  the  dramatist's  intentions. 

In  1854,  however,  Mr.  Hook  entirely  lost  sight  of  Venice,  her  brides,  her 
cavaliers,  her  gondolas,  the  water-gates  of  her  palaces,  and  her  dingy  canals, 
and  found  something  to  suit  his  pencil  in  the  hedgerows  and  corn-fields  of 
old  England.  We  always  like  to  see  a  painter  of  acknowledged  ability  and 
genius  turning  his  thoughts  into  a  new  channel,  especially  when,  as  in  this 
case,  the  diversion  is  favourable  to  the  artist :  the  world  is  often  apt  to  think 
— and  generally  the  suspicion  is  well  founded — that,  in  dramatic  phraseology, 
his  powers  cannot  reach  beyond  a  certain  line  of  characters.  We  believe  the 
chief  reason  why  artists  so  rarely  attempt  novelties  is  that  they  are  content 
to  wear  the  laurels  gained  in  one  service,  united  with  the  apprehension  that  a 
failure  in  another  would  involve  the  partial  loss  of  those  they  have  already 
won.  Possibly,  too,  they  may  entertain  feelings  similar  to  those  which,  we 
believe,  most  actors  possess,  who  would  greatly  prefer  to  play  the  same 
character  over  and  over  again,  to  undergoing  the  labour  and  study  of  a  new 
one.  Of  the  three  pictures  exhibited  by  Mr.  Hook  in  1854,  one,  "A  Rest 
by  the  Wayside,"  represented  a  group  of  noble  trees,  thickly  clustering 
shrubs,  and  verdant  herbage,  the  former  serving  to  shelter  a  gipsy  woman 
and  her  child  resting  under  their  shadow :  the  foliage  is  pencilled  with  truth 
and  delicacy  ;  we  scarcely  remember  to  have  seen  a  better  piece  of  landscape- 
painting  by  a  professed  historical  painter.  Another  owes  its  origin  to  the 
history  of  the  Huguenots  ;  it  is  called  "  Time  of  the  Persecution  of  the 
Reformers  in  Paris;"  it  forms  one  of  our  illustrations:  this  picture  is, 
without  doubt,  one  of  the  artist's  best  productions.  It  represents  a  Pro- 
testant family  passing  the  image  of  the  Virgin  in  the  public  streets  without 
paying  it  the  homage  which  the  Catholics  required  of  the  passengers,  by 
uncovering  the  head:  a  zealous  soldier  "  unbonnets  "  the  recusant  with  his 
lance,  as  no  Catholic  would  pollute  his  fingers  by  contact  with  anything  worn 
by  a  heretic  ;  the  priest  is  directing  the  attention  of  the  chief  of  the  family  to 
the  figure  which  he  has  passed  unnoticed  :  the  earnest  look  of  the  wife,  and 
the  horror  of  the  young  boy  are  points  in  the  composition  which  the  painter 
has  rendered  very  expressively. 


GIL  L. 


■03 


In  1855  Mr.  Hook  sent  to  the  Academy,  amongst  other  pictures,  "  Market 
Morning,"  a  bit  of  genuine  English  scenery,  exquisitely  wrought  out;  in 
1 86 1,  when  he  was  made  Academician,  "  Leaving  Cornwall  for  the  Whitby 
Fishing."  From  this  time  he  seems  to  have  transferred  the  most  part  of  his 
attention  from  historical  to  marine  pieces.  Thus  we  find  him  accredited  with 
"The  Mackerel  Take"  and  "Breton  Fishermen's  Wives"  in  1865;  with 
"Digging  for  Sand  Eels"  and  "Mother  Carey's  Chickens"  in  1867;  in 
1871  with  some  Norwegian  pieces,  "Salmon-Trappers,  Norway,"  "Market 
Girls  at  a  Fjord  ;  "  in  1874,  with  "  Under  the  Lea  of  a  Rock  "  and  "  Jetsam 
and  Flotsam;"  in  1877,  with  "  Friends  in  Rough  Weather ;  "  and  in  1878 
with  "The  Coral  Fisher."  We  have  reserved  for  special  mention  "The 
Samphire-Gatherer  "  (1875),  of  which  the  Art  Jounial  says,  "  A  seaside  piece, 
representing  a  lusty  lass  on  the  edge  of  sheer-down  cliffs,  pursuing  her  risky 
calling,  while  the  deep  blue  sea  at  foot  beats  lazily  against  a  long  shore-line 
of  perpendicular  rock,  is  a  splendid  specimen  of  sea-painting,  intensely  rich 
in  tint  and  tone  and  strikingly  illustrative  of  what  has  been  said  of  Hook, 
that  he  is  one  of  the  few  artists  of  the  day  capable  of  painting  Nature  as 
Nature  herself  ought  to  be  painted." 

Were  the  merits  of  British  landscape-painters  estimated  by  the  Academical 
honours  bestowed  on  them,  these  artists  would  hold  but  a  very  minor  rank  in 
the  scale  of  Art.  Yet  ignored  as  they  are,  almost  systematically,  by  those 
who  might  confer  due  honour,  there  is  no  question  but  that  landscape- 
painting  finds  as  numerous  a  class  of  admirers  among  collectors  and  the 
public  generally  as  any  other  kind  of  pictorial  Art.  This  is  proved  by  the 
prices  paid  for  landscape-subjects  when  obtained  either  direct  from  the  artist 
or  when  offered  at  public  sales ;  the  works  of  Turner,  Stanfield,  the  Linnells, 
D.  Cox,  and  many  others  who  might  be  named,  realising  prices  as  high,  if 
not  higher,  than  do  the  majority  of  figure-subjects ;  and  so  long  as  our 
painters  maintain  the  excellence  they  have  reached  in  this  department,  there 
is  little  apprehension  of  any  diminution  in  the  demand  for  their  works. 

The  artist  whose  name  is  now  before  us  is  one  who  has  been  slowly 
working  his  way  to  a  good  reputation  as  a  landscape-painter.  Like  many 
others  similarly  circumstanced,  he  has  found  great  difficulties  in  his  onward 
path ;  but  diligence  and  perseverance  have  enabled  him  to  surmount  them, 
and  his  productions  are  now  finding  a  place  in  the  collections  of  amateurs 


104  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

able  to  appreciate  their  worth.  Mr.  Gill  was  born  at  Islington  on  the 
29th  of  November,  1820,  whither  his  father  had  come  up  from  Aylsham, 
near  Norwich,  to  seek  employment  as  a  "japanner"  in  Clerkenwell,  a 
locality  where  such  work  was,  half  a  century  ago,  carried  on  to  a  consider- 
able extent.  The  natural  talent  of  the  elder  Gill  caused  him  to  find 
employment  in  painting  designs  on  Japan  ware :  but  soon  feeling  sufficient 
confidence  in  himself  to  aim  at  something  higher  than  this  mechanical  Art, 
though  he  never  had  any  instruction,  he  quitted  its  pursuit  and  commenced 
practising  portraiture  and  animal-painting.  About  the  year  1823  he  left 
London  and  travelled  through  the  country  following  his  profession,  and 
ultimately  settled  at  Ludlow,  in  Shropshire :  I  find  his  name  as  an  occasional 
exhibitor  at  the  Royal  Academy — principally  of  subjects  of  "  still-life."  His 
son,  who  early  gave  indications  of  inheriting  his  father's  love  of  Art,  was 
attracted,  by  the  picturesque  scenery  round  about  their  place  of  residence, 
to  adopt  landscape-painting ;  and  many  of  his  youthful  days  were  devoted 
to  sketching  on  the  banks  of  the  river  that  flows  past  Ludlow;  while  the 
evenings  were  given  to  drawing  the  human  figure  and  elementary  outlines 
under  the  guidance  of  his  father — his  only  instructor,  with  the  exception  of 
a  few  months'  study  with  an  artist  named  Thornecraft,  who  had  been  a  pupil 
of  Glover.  After  some  residence  at  Ludlow,  Mr.  Gill's  family  left  the  town 
and  settled  at  Hereford.  Here  the  young  artist  had  a  wider  and  still  more 
picturesque  field  of  study,  especially  amid  the  beautiful  scenery  of  the  Wye  : 
here,  too,  he  had  many  kind  patrons  with  whom  his  early  performances 
found  favour ;  among  whom  he  mentions  particularly  the  late  Mr.  Charles 
Phillips,  the  barrister,  who  purchased  several  of  his  pictures,  and  procured 
him  commissions  for  others:  one  of  these  works,  "  The  Village  of  Tintern, 
on  the  Wye,"  was  painted  for  Mr.,  now  Sir  W.  H.  Bodkin.  Furnished 
with  letters  of  introduction,  he  came  up  to  London  in  1841,  taking 
Birmingham  on  his  route.  The  exhibition  of  the  Society  of  Artists  was  then 
open  in  the  town  ;  it  was  the  first  display  of  the  kind  Mr.  Gill  had  ever  seen  ; 
David  Cox  happened  to  have  several  examples  in  the  gallery,  and  these 
works  of  the  great  landscape-painter,  with  whom  he  subsequently  had  an 
interview  at  his  residence  near  Birmingham,  made  a  powerful  impression  on 
his  mind.  Two  years  after  his  arrival  in  London,  Mr.  Gill  was  admitted  a 
student  of  the  Royal  Academy. 

The  first  picture  he  sent  to  a  metropolitan  exhibition  was  one  contributed 


GILL. 


'05 


to  the  British  Institution  in  1842, — "View  in  Croft  Park,  Herefordshire," 
painted  for  Mr.  Charles  Phillips.  His  first  appearance  as  an  exhibitor  at  the 
Royal  Academy  was  in  the  same  year,  when  he  sent  to  the  gallery  "  Peasants 
distressed  in  a  Thunder-Storm."  One  of  three  pictures,  "  Storm  and 
Shipwreck,"  sent  to  the  Academy  in  1845,  found  a  purchaser  in  Colonel 
Colby,  of  Fynone,  South  Wales. 

It  would  prove  a  monotonous  narrative  to  describe  the  numerous  pictures 
painted  by  this  artist :  with  a  few  exceptions  they  are  drawn  from  the  scener}' 
of  Wales,  and  chiefly  from  the  northern  part  of  the  Principality ;  from  the 
rocky  sea-coast,  the  banks  of  rivers,  and  from  streams  having  a  sufficient 
volume  of  water  to  furnish  a  cataract  on  a  small  scale.  While  his  pencil  often 
realises  with  due  gentleness  the  quietude  of  nature,  it  is  equally,  perhaps 
more,  successful  in  representing  the  storm  and  the  angry  strife  of  the 
elements ;  his  more  attractive  works,  perhaps,  may  be  placed  under  the  latter 
class. 

"A  Storm-Scene  at  St.  Gowan's,"  a  majestic  promontory  at  the  southern 
extremity  of  Pembrokeshire,  exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  1846,  is  a  small 
picture  representing  the  sea  dashing  furiously  upon  a  rocky  shore.  The 
management  of  the  white  spray  tells  powerfully  in  opposition  to  the  darker 
objects  brought  into  the  composition  ;  it  is  thrown  high  over  the  rocks,  while 
the  whole  scene  is  portrayed  with  much  truth  and  spirit.  "Landscape,  with 
Cattle — Evening"  (British  Institution,  1857),  is  a  sweet  little  picture,  remark- 
able for  sobriety  and  truth  :  the  animals  are  well  grouped  and  carefully  drawn. 
In  the  "  Fall  of  the  Llugwy,  Bettvvs-y-Coed  "  (Royal  Academy,  1 860),  the  artist 
has  employed  his  materials  to  good  purpose ;  the  scene  is  faithfully  transferred 
to  the  canvas.  In  the  British  Institution  gallery  of  the  same  year  was  another 
excellent  view  on  the  Llugwy,  the  "Fall  near  Pont  Gyfyng;"  and  at  the 
Academy,  in  1863,  a  second  version,  but  differently  treated,  of  the  Fall  at 
Bettwys-y-Coed  :  all  these  pictures  worthily  represent  the  beauties  of  a  certain 
class  of  Welsh  scenery.  "  Rhaiadr  Du,  North  Wales,"  in  the  Royal  Academy 
exhibition  of  1861,  may  be  classed  among  Mr.  Gill's  best  works  of  this  period. 
"  Hardraw  Scar,  near  Hawes,  Yorkshire,"  and  a  canvas  with  the  simple  title  of 
"Rapids,"  both  exhibited  at  the  British  Institution  in  1S64,  are  to  be 
commended  for  most  effective  water-expression  ;  the  former  as  a  cascade, 
the  latter  as  a  swiftly  flowing  river. 

About  this  time  Mr.  Gill  must  have  been  taking  note  of  the  scenery  of 

p 


io6  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Scotland,  passing  from  the  thickly  wooded  glens  and  picturesque  waterfalls 
of  Wales  to  the  bolder  scenery  of  the  north,  on  the  banks  of  the  Clyde ;  for 
we  find  him  exhibiting  at  the  British  Institution  in  1865,  "On  the  Clyde, 
Stonebyres,  above  the  Fall,"  admirably  rendered,  with  more  delicacy  of 
colour  and  better  feeling  for  tree-forms  than  had  hitherto  been  his  wont ;  and 
at  the  Academy  in  1866,  "  Fall  on  the  River  Clyde,  Cora  Linn;  "  it  shows 
power  of  painting  and  good  composition,  though  the  rocks,  generally  this 
artist's  weak  point,  lack  solidity.  "A  Storm  on  the  Coast,"  exhibited  with 
the  latter,  is  a  right  good  picture. 

Except  only  as  regards  the  forms  of  the  waves,  his  picture,  "  Storm  on  a 
Rocky  Coast — Wreck  of  a  Merchant  Vessel,"  the  ship  painted  by  W.  A. 
Knell,  received  very  favourable  notice  at  the  time  it  was  exhibited  at  the 
Academy — namely,  in  1867.  It  had  as  companions,  though  widely  diverse 
in  subject  from  the  other,  two  charming  transcripts  of  quiet  nature ;  one, 
"  On  the  Banks  of  a  River  in  North  Wales — Morning ;  "  the  other,  "  Cottage 
Scene  on  the  Banks  of  a  River  in  North  Wales — Evening." 

We  give  two  examples  of  Mr.  Gill's  favourite  subjects,  which  will  suffi- 
ciently show  his  manner  of  treating  them — one  that  can  scarcely  fail  to 
commend  itself  both  to  admirers  of  the  picturesque  and  to  those  who  are  able 
to  judge  of  good  landscape-painting.  The  first,  "  On  the  River  Lledr,  North 
Wales,"  was  exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  1864,  and  was  purchased  by 
Mr.  H.  Wallis.  Here  is  a  well-balanced  composition ;  the  banks  on  each 
side  of  the  perpetually  moving  stream  harmonize  agreeably  to  the  eye, 
without  any  sameness  of  form,  while  the  tiny  river  is  precipitated  in  shallow 
falls  between  the  huge  boulders  that  would  fain  hinder  its  course :  the  play 
of  light  and  shade  on  the  water  Is  most  effectively  managed.  A  boy  Is 
gathering  wood  left  by  the  flood  on  the  bank,  while  a  girl  and  child  look  on. 

The  second,  "Storm  and  Shipwreck,"  appeared  at  the  Academy  In  1868. 
The  subject  seems  to  have  been  derived  from  the  rock-bound  shores  of  North 
Wales ;  but  wherever  it  may  have  been  sketched.  It  is  a  scene  of  appalling 
grandeur ;  no  vessel  In  close  proximity  to  such  an  adamantine  coast  could 
possibly  outlive  a  storm ;  and  the  crew  of  the  unfortunate  ship,  which  seems 
to  be  going  down  by  the  head,  have  found  this  out  to  their  terrible  cost,  for 
there  appears  to  be  but  small  chance  of  rescue ;  no  life-boat  Is  at  hand,  and 
no  rocket-apparatus  holds  out  even  the  smallest  chance  of  relief  The  picture 
is  a  fine  example  of  sea-scape,  and  most  Impressive. 


X    - 
^1 


r  I  C  K  E  R  S  G  I L  L.  107 

There  are  many  other  works  from  the  hand  of  this  painter  we  could  point 
out  as  peculiarly  noticeable;  notably  his  "  Rapids,"  seen  in  the  Academy  in 
1872  ;  luit  there  is  one  especially  which  is  far  too  important  to  be  passed 
over,  "The  Waters  dividing-  from  the  Dry  land,"  as  expressed  in  the  Book 
of  Genesis  ;  it  was  exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  1869.  Original  in  conception 
and  grand  in  treatment,  this  picture  could  scarcely  be  surpassed,  after  its 
kind,  were  it  more  brilliant  in  colour. 


An  American  author,  in  a  work  on  Art*  which  has  come  under  the  notice 
of  the  writer  of  these  biographical  sketches,  makes  the  following  remarks  :  the 
book  is  dated  from  Italy,  and  the  opinions  are  expressed  by  one  evidently 
acquainted  with  the  ancient  and  modern  Art  of  Europe: — "The  English 
school  has  all  the  healthful  love  of  the  German  for  nature,  without  its  lowness. 
Such  religious  Art  as  it  possessed  was  extinguished  by  the  Reformation. 
Indeed,  Art  of  all  kinds  met  with  a  narrow  escape  at  the  hands  of  the  Puritans. 
Under  more  liberal  views  of  human  nature  it  again  rose ;  but  it  has  ever 
maintained  a  secondary  position  to  science,  being  considered  rather  as  an 
accomplishment  for  the  cultivated  than  a  necessity  for  all  classes.  As  a 
national  passion  it  does  not  exist ;  yet,  probably,  there  is  no  country  in  which 
there  is  a  better  understanding  of  its  principles,  as  we  see  in  Music,  by  the 
few  who  have  given  it  attention.  What  they  do,  they  do  thoroughly  and 
systematically ;  so  that  it  is  from  England  that  the  world  of  late  has  received 

the    soundest   criticisms   on    Art Those    sound   elements    of  British 

character  which  lie  at  the  bottom  of  its  common  life  in  its  deeper  meaning, 
the  fruition  of  which  is  in  English  homes,  and  its  pleasure  in  a  sympathy 
with  external  Nature  in  her  healthiest  action  and  formations,  are  now  begin- 
ning to  stimulate  Art  to  their  real  expression  ;  hence,  landscape,  domestic 
life,  and  national  humour  have  all  found  able  artists  to  express  their  vivifying 
truths.  An  attempt  to  revive  symbolical  Art  has  been  made,  but  this  can 
live  only  under  the  forms  of  pure  Romanism.  English  Art,  as  yet,  has  not 
essayed  to  rival  Italy  in  its  loftiest  expressions ;  there  is  a  moral,  notwith- 
standing, in  its  common  form,  and  but  few  men,  if  any,  have  been  found 
willing  to  violate  the  wholesome  natural  instincts  of  the  nation,  as  manifested 
in  feeling  for  animals,  manly  exercises,  and  ordinary  humanity." 

*  "  Art-Hints,"  by  J.  J.  Jarves.     Published  by  Sampson  Low  &  Co.,  London. 


io8  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Complimentary  as  these  observations  are,  both  to  our  national  character 
and  to  our  school  of  Art,  we  believe  they  may  be  accepted  by  all,  save  those 
whose  judgment  is  warped  by  prejudice,  as  founded  on  truth.  So  strong  is 
our  conviction  of  the  general  excellence  attained  by  our  artists,  that  we  would 
hazard  a  comparison  of  their  works,  in  all  the  essentials  of  true  Art,  with  those 
of  the  painters  of  any  country  or  period,  except  in  the  classes  of  symbolical 
and  religious  Art. 

These  remarks  would  scarcely  be  out  of  place  as  introductory  to  a 
notice  of  any  British  painter  of  reputation,  but  they  seem  specially  to  be 
called  for  in  connection  with  the  career  of  an  artist  who  has  successfully 
laboured  to  uphold  the  credit  of  his  school  in  a  department  in  which  that 
school  has  always  been  considered  inferior  to  those  of  the  Continent. 
Historical  painting  has  ever,  in  England,  had  difficulties  to  contend  with 
sufficient  to  deter  the  most  sanguine  from  adopting  it.  Till  within  a  few 
years  it  was  a  starving  profession,  and  though  now  a  more  genial  temperature 
of  patronage  invites  its  cultivation,  it  is  far  from  thriving  luxuriously — from 
the  absence  of  careful  and  liberal  tending  alone — as  it  did  in  the  latter  days 
of  Mediaeval  Art,  and  as  it  does  now,  to  a  considerable  extent,  on  the 
Continent. 

Frederick  Richard  Pickersgill  was  born  in  London  in  1820,  of  a 
family  whose  names  are  familiar  in  the  Art-world.  His  father  was  an 
occasional  contributor  to  the  exhibitions  of  the  Royal  Academy ;  his  uncle 
was  the  distinguished  portrait-painter,  and  a  member  of  the  Royal  Academy ; 
and  his  mother  was  the  sister  of  the  late  F.  R.  Witherington,  R.A.  ;  so  that 
both  on  the  paternal  and  maternal  sides.  Art  is  his  inheritance.  After  he 
had  received  an  ordinary  school  education,  his  uncle,  Mr.  Witherington, 
perceiving  in  the  youth  a  -decided  taste  for  the  Arts,  undertook  to  superintend 
his  studies,  and  some  time  was  passed  under  the  judicious  guidance  of  his 
relative  in  drawing  the  figure  from  plaster  casts.  In  1839  he  sent  a  drawing 
in  water-colours  to  the  exhibition  of  the  Royal  Academy,  the  subject  of  which 
was  "  The  Brazen  Age,"  as  described  by  Hesiod,  and  at  the  end  of  the  same 
year  he  entered  as  a  student  of  the  Academy ;  but  it  is  singular  that  one 
whose  after  course  has  been  so  honourable,  should  never,  during  the  whole 
period  of  his  studentship,  have  succeeded  in  the  competitions  for  the  prizes. 
Mr.  Pickersgill' s  want  of  success  is  by  no  means  a  solitary  example.  We 
have  known  young  men — others  as  well  as  artists — with  talent,  industry,  and 


P  I  C  K  E  R  S  G  I L  L.  109 

perseverance,  yet,  from  some  inexplicable  cause  or  another,  behind  their 
fellow-students  in  the  race  for  honours,  though  they  have  afterwards  become 
most  distinguished ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  many  who  have  started  most 
prosperously  fail  in  after  life  in  maintaining  the  position  of  their  early 
years. 

Although,  from  the  first,  Mr.  Pickersgill  determined  to  adopt  historical 
painting,  or  that  which  partakes  of  its  character,  he  did  not  follow  the  beaten 
track  upon  which  too  many  young  artists  are  inclined  to  enter  and  so 
unwilling  to  quit.  There  is  nothing  that  so  distinctly  marks  independence 
of  thought  and  self-reliance,  especially  in  Art,  as  a  thorough  deviation  from 
the  distinctive  character  of  others;  but  this  very  desire  after  novelty,  unless 
controlled  by  judgment,  is  apt  to  lead  astray  or  terminate  in  eccentricity :  of 
this  some  of  our  young  painters  of  the  present  day  unfortunately  supply 
undoubted  evidence.  In  every  attempt  at  originality  of  subject  or  treatment, 
the  utmost  care  and  discrimination  are  necessary  to  avoid  everything  offensive 
to  taste,  to  nature,  or  to  the  true  end  of  Art.  The  first  oil  picture  exhibited 
by  Mr.  Pickersgill,  in  1 841,  at  once  showed  his  determination  to  seek  subjects 
from  the  best  and  least  hackneyed  sources.  The  "  Trachiniae"  of  Sophocles 
suggested  to  him  the  "Combat  between  Hercules  and  Achelous,  the  river- 
god,  in  the  form  of  a  bull,  for  Dejanira."  As  a  first  attempt  in  oil-painting, 
and  of  a  difficult  subject,  the  work  was  commendable.  During  the  next  two 
or  three  years  he  exhibited  in  succession  "  Amoret  delivered  from  the 
Enchanter,"  "  CEdipus  cursing  Polynices,"  "  Florimel  in  the  Cottage  of  the 
Witch,"  and  "  Dante's  Dream."  The  committee  of  the  Art  Union  of  London 
selected  his  "  Florimel"  to  engrave  for  their  subscribers — a  high  compliment 
to  so  young  an  artist. 

For  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  British  school  of  painting,  the  year 
1843  witnessed  a  desire  on  the  part  of  the  Government  to  take  it  under  Its 
paternal  care.  True  It  Is  that  neither  then  nor  since  has  the  State  done  much 
for  Art,  but  It  was  a  step  gained  on  Its  behalf  to  have  recognised  the 
principle  of  public  patronage. 

Raffaelle  and  Da  Vinci,  Titian  and  Guldo,  Corregglo  and  the  Carracci, 
Paul  Veronese  and  Tintoretto,  Velascjuez  and  Murlllo,  Rembrandt  and  Rubens, 
grew  mighty  under  the  shadow  of  crowns  and  mitres.  And  why  should  not 
the  same  influences  stimulate  the  labours  of  the  British  artist  ?  When  we 
look  back  on  the  century  that  has  passed  since  we  had  a  school  of  our  own, 


110  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

and  remember  how  it  has  grown  up  to  its  present  height  simply  by  the  spirit 
of  those  who  compose  it,  we  cannot  but  deplore  the  indifference  which  has  left 
it  to  flourish  or  decay,  as  chance  may  happen  to  it.  To  the  exhibition  of  car- 
toons in  Westminster  Hall  in  1843  J^If-  Pickersgill  contributed  "The  Death  of 
Lear,"  which  elicited  so  much  favour  from  the  judges,  that  the  artist  was  in  the 
number  of  the  ten  to  whom  a  premium  of  ^100  each  was  awarded.  The  merits 
of  this  work  stand  high.  It  is  distinguished  by  great  breadth  of  power  and 
execution  ;  the  chiaroscuro  is  commonplace,  but  it  is  the  best  style  of  common- 
place. The  costume  has  been  carefully  studied ;  it  is  appropriate,  and  severely 
shorn  of  the  unmeaning  embellishments  so  highly  valued  among  artists  of  the 
present  time.  In  the  "  fresco  competition,"  the  following  year,  he  was  not  suc- 
cessful ;  the  subject  was  "  Sir  Calepine  rescuing  Serena ;  "  the  drawing  of  the 
figures  was  decided  and  correct,  and  there  was  some  good  colouring  in  it.  We 
believe  Mr.  Pickersgill  regretted  he  had  sent  it  in,  for  he  confesses  it  to  have 
been  a  failure,  so  far  as  the  manipulation  is  concerned :  this,  however,  is 
scarcely  to  be  wondered  at,  for  the  process  of  fresco  painting  was  then  quite 
new  to  our  artists.     This  was  his  first  and  last  appearance  in  that  style. 

The  year  1847  was  a  kind  of  Olympiad  in  Art,  and  an  epoch  in  the  life  of 
this  artist.  The  great  exhibition  of  pictures  was  opened  in  Westminster  Hall, 
and  Mr.  Pickersgill  achieved  a  notable  triumph  in  his  contribution  of  "  The 
Burial  of  Harold  :  "  it  obtained  the  first  prize  of  ^500,  and  was  purchased 
by  the  Royal  Commissioners  for  ^500  more.  We  have  seen  it  in  its  place  in 
the  Houses  of  Parliament,  and  it  satisfies  us  there,  as  it  did  in  Westminster 
Hall,  as  a  production  most  honourable  to  our  school.  His  contribution  of 
the  same  year  to  the  Academy  was  the  representation  of  the  performance  of 
divine  service  by  the  early  Christians  of  Rome  among  the  Catacombs, 
showing  the  persecution  to  which  the  converts  to  the  faith  were  subjected. 
The  picture  is  full  of  character. 

Mr.  Pickersgill  had  now  obtained  a  position  which  the  Royal  Academy 
could  not  but  recognise;  accordingly,  in  November,  1847,  they  elected  him 
an  Associate  Member.  His  pictures  of  the  following  year  manifest  a 
decided  improvement  in  manipulation.  One  of  his  pictures  sent  to  the 
Academy  in  1858  was,  "Pluto  carrying  away  Proserpine."  His  style  of 
colouring,  which  had  a  tendency  to  thinness,  though  rarely  deficient  in 
brilliancy,  was  now  full  and  substantial.  His  single  contribution  of  1854, 
"  The  Death  of  Foscari,  Doge  of  Venice,"   was  purchased  by  the  late  Prince 


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P  I  C  K  E  R  S  G  I  L  L.  1 1 1 

Consort.  It  is  one  of  the  most  important  results  of  the  artist's  brush.  Our 
engraving  presents  much  of  the  boldness  of  the  original,  and  will  enable  our 
readers  to  form  a  very  good  idea  of  the  grouping. 

Mr.  Pickersgill  became  an  Academician  in  1857  ;  his  influence  in  the 
Academy  has  always  been  considerable.  In  1874  he  was  elected  Keeper  and 
Trustee. 

We  may  mention  three  amongst  his  later  works — "  Ferdinand  and  Mi- 
randa" appeared  at  Burlington  House  in  1863  ;  "Columbus  at  Lisbon"  in 
1868;  and  "  Old  Letters"  in  1875. 

As  a  general  remark  applicable  to  the  works  of  this  artist,  we  may  say  that 
they  exhibit  sound  judgment  and  good  taste  in  the  selection  of  subject. 
This  is  the  first,  and  not  an  unimportant  step,  towards  excellence.  The 
subjects  selected  are  treated  with  delicacy  of  feeling  and  purity  of  expression. 
We  do  not  remember  a  coarse  or  unrefined  thought  in  any  of  his  pictures,  or 
anything  approaching  vulgarity,  while  they  are  perfectly  free  from  affectation 
or  prettinesses.  His  style  is  altogether  good,  and  the  quality  of  his  painting 
such  as  will  test  close  observation. 


CHAPTER  III. 

ARTISTS    BORN    AFTER    182O. 

We  borrow  from  Mr.  Ottley's  supplement  to  the  last  edition  of  Bryan's 
"  Dictionarv^  of  Painters  and  Engravers  "  the  following  account  of  the  early 
life  of  the  distinguished  artist  who  is  the  subject  of  this  notice  : — "  Thomas 
Faed  was  born  at  Burley  Mill,  in  the  picturesque  stewartry  of  Kirkcudbright, 
in  Scotland,  in  the  year  1826.  His  father,  who  was  a  man  of  considerable 
mental  powers,  and  with  a  genius  for  mechanical  contrivance  which  he  had  no 
opportunity  of  developing,  there  carried  on  business  as  an  engineer  and  mill- 
wright. The  beauty  of  the  surrounding  scenery,  and  the  interesting  subjects 
with  which  it  was  peopled,  soon  caught  the  attention  of  the  embryo  artist,  who 
in  the  summer  months,  when  the  mill  was  standing  and  there  was  no  grain 
preparing  in  the  kiln,  was  in  the  habit  of  converting  the  smoke-begrimed 
apartment  into  a  studio,  where,  like  a  second  Rembrandt,  with  a  fair  top- 
light  and  a  dark  background,  he  painted  assiduously  from  the  ragged  boys 
who  flitted  in  the  rustic  world  around  him."  His  father  died  while  the  inci- 
pient painter  was  yet  in  his  boyhood  ;  but  genius  had  already  marked  the 
family  for  its  own.  His  elder  brother,  John,  who  had  achieved  eminence  as  a 
painter  in  Edinburgh,  recognised  the  drawing  talents  of  Thomas,  and  invited 
him  to  his  house  in  1843,  where  he  entertained  him  for  some  years,  nurturing 
the  gifts  which  were  so  apparent  in  him.  Never  was  family  love  so  happily 
displayed  as  in  this  case,  when  the  Royal  Academician  of  the  future  might,  if 
he  were  asked,  acknowledge  with  pride  and  satisfaction  that  he  owed  in  great 
measure  his  position  as  an  artist  to  a  brother's  affectionate  solicitude.  Our 
youthful  aspirant  laboured  for  some  years  with  assiduity  in  the  Edinburgh 
School  of  Design,  a  very  short  time  under  Sir  William  Allan,  but  principally 
under  the  late  Thomas  Duncan,  and  was  annually  rewarded  at  the  compe- 
titions for  prizes  in  various  departments.  The  earliest  work  he  ventured  to 
exhibit  was  a  water-colour  drawing,  "  The  Old  English  Baron,"  but  he  after- 
wards devoted  himself  to  oil-painting. 


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FA  ED.  113 

Mr.  Faed  advanced  so  rapidly  in  his  profession  that  in  1849,  when  he  had 
scarcely  reached  his  twenty-third  year,  he  was  made  an  Associate  of  the 
Royal  Scottish  Academy.  Among  the  various  works  he  painted  at  this 
period  of  his  life  was  one  that  has  become  widely  known  by  the  engraving 
from  it,  "  Sir  Walter  Scott  and  his  Friends  at  Abbotsford."  He  made  his 
appearance  in  London  as  an  exhibitor  in  185 1,  while  he  was  still  residing  in 
Edinburgh,  by  sending  to  the  Royal  Academy  three  pictures,  "  Cottage 
Piety,"  "  My  Father  urged  me  sair,"  from  Au/d  Robin  Gray,  and  "  The 
First  Step."  In  1852  he  came  to  London,  where  he  has  since  resided.  That 
year  he  contributed  to  the  Academy  Exhibition  "  Burns  and  Highland 
Mar}',"  and  the  "  Patron  and  Patroness's  Visit  to  the  Village  School,"  now  the 
property  of  Mr.  Graham,  Skelmorley,  near  Glasgow,  and  engraved  here.  As 
a  subject  admitting  Infinite  variety  of  character  these  village  schools  have  often 
been  visited — at  least  mentally — by  gaire  painters  both  English  and  foreign. 
Mr.  Faed's  version,  though  the  work  of  a  young  artist,  will  bear  favourable 
comparison  with  the  best. 

In  1853  there  appeared  at  the  Academy  from  the  pencil  of  Mr.  Faed, 
"The  Early  Lesson"  and  "Sophia  and  Olivia;"  the  latter  very  graceful 
In  composition — the  heads,  draperies,  and  accessories  all  painted  with  the 
nicest  finish.  In  the  following  year  he  contributed  to  the  same  galler}% 
"  Morning — Reapers  going  out,"  and  "Peggy,"  from  Allan  Ramsay's  Gentle 
Shepherd :  both  these  pictures  were  spoken  of  In  \&ry  commendatory  terms  in 
various  reviews  of  the  exhibition  of  that  year.  From  1855  may  be  dated  the 
commencement  of  the  popularity  Mr.  Faed  has  ever  since  held  In  public 
opinion;  for  the  year  produced  "The  MItherless  Bairn,"  a  composition 
which  the  hands  of  engravers  have  scattered  far  and  wide  over  the  world ;  an 
engraving  from  the  original  sketch  was  published  In  the  Art  Jotirnal  in  1 866, 
under  the  title  of  "  The  Orphan  :  "  and  two  less  important  works,  "  Children 
going  to  Market"  and  "From  our  own  Correspondent;"  the  latter  repre- 
sents an  old  woman  seated  in  her  cottage  and  reading  the  Times.  These 
pictures  of  single  figures  are  by  no  means  the  least  valuable  of  Mr.  Faed's 
impersonations.  "Home  and  the  Homeless" — a  composition  of  similar 
import  to  "The  MItherless  Bairn" — and  "Highland  Mar)%"  were  hung 
In  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1856.  "  The  First  Break  In  the  Family,"  his 
solitary  contribution  in  1857,  has  never  faded  from  our  recollection  ever  since 
we  saw  It  on  the  walls  of  the  Academy :  its  rich  and  powerful  colouring,  the 

Q 


114  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

various  feelings  indicated  on  tlie  countenances  of  the  figures,  its  general 
poetic  treatment,  with  the  rainbow  arching  over  the  landscape  and  lighting 
up  the  cottage-door  from  which  the  boy  has  just  departed  to  seek  his  fortune 
in  the  world,  all  combine  to  make  us  envious  of  the  possessor  of  this  most 
covetable  picture.  The  year  following  Mr.  Faed  exhibited  four  works  :  "  The 
Sunbeams,"  "A  Listener  never  hears  gude  o'  himself,"  "The  Welcome," 
and  "The  Ayrshire  Lassie" — each  excellent  of  its  kind. 

One  of  the  two  compositions  sent  by  this  artist  to  the  Academy  in  1859 
has,  like  many  others  by  him,  been  brought  within  the  knowledge  of 
thousands  by  means  of  engraving:  we  allude  to  his  "  Sunday  in  the  Back- 
woods," a  work  of  great  excellence  in  its  line  of  subject.  The  other  work 
was  "  My  ain  Fireside." 

Who  does  not  remember  Mr.  Faed's  semi-nude  little  urchin  seated  on  a 
table,  waiting  the  termination  of  his  poor  mother's  almost  interminable  task 
of  mending  "His  only  Pair"  of  trousers,  worn  by  time,  and  tattered 
through  scrambles  amid  brake  and  briars  ?  the  only  work  Mr.  Faed  exhibited 
in  i860;  but  it  was  quite  enough  to  attract  crowds  before  it,  as  one  of  the 
great  features  of  the  gallery. 

In  1 86 1  Mr.  Faed  had  conferred  upon  him  an  honour  which,  not  unjustly, 
he  might  have  received  two  or  three  years  previously :  he  was  elected 
Associate  of  the  Academy.  His  sole  exhibited  picture  of  the  year — and  it  is 
a  noble  one — was  "  From  Dawn  to  Sunset."  We  could  write  a  page  or  two 
about  this  most  instructive  picture,  one  of  the  very  highest  class,  which  has 
not  inappropriately  been  called  "  a  domestic  reading  of  Shakspere's  Seven 
Ages  of  Man  ;  .  .  .  a  deep  domestic  epic,  worked  out  with  marvellous  skill 
of  Art." 

So  far  as  relates  to  size  of  canvas  his  contributions  to  the  Academy  in 
1862  were  on  a  comparatively  small  scale ;  but  each  one  of  the  four  pictures 
he  exhibited  would  grace  any  gallery.  They  were,  "Kate  Nickleby,"  "A 
Flower  from  Paddy's  Land" — both  of  them  single  figures — and  "  New  Wars 
to  an  Old  Soldier:"  the  last  represents  a  veteran  of  the  army,  who  is 
decorated  with  the  medal  for  Waterloo,  half-asleep  in  a  chair,  while  his 
daughter  reads  to  him  an  account  of  some  recent  engagement — possibly  in 
the  Crimea ;  a  third  figure,  a  little  boy,  is  at  play  near  his  grandfather. 
With  these  the  artist  sent  the  only  portrait  we  ever  remember  to  have  seen 
from  his   hand — a  capital  one  of  the  son  of  Mr.  Hepworth  Dixon.     Three 


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FA  ED.  115 

pictures,  also  smnll  in  size,  were  Mr.  Faed's  contingent  to  the  Academy  in 
the  year  following.  "  Train  up  a  Child"  is  the  text  from  which  Mr.  Faed  dis- 
coursed pictorially  on  one  of  the  first  duties  of  humble  housewifery  :  a  mother 
and  young  daughter  are  busy  with  needles  and  thread  on  sundr}'^  articles  of 
wearing-apparel.  "  The  Silken  Gown,"  is  a  version  of  the  old  Scotch  song, 
"  An  ye  shall  walk  in  silk  attire."  "  An  Irish  Orange-girl  "  completes  the 
triad  of  pictures — all  admirably  painted. 

"Our  Washing-Day"  and  "  Baith  Father  and  Mother"  were  exhibited 
in  1864:  the  former  shows  some  buxom  lassies  chatting  and  laughing  over 
their  wash-tubs,  the  latter  the  interior  of  a  village  shoemaker's  workshop, 
whose  occupier  holds  a  motherless  child  on  his  knees  while  he  prepares  her 
for  school  by  gently  putting  a  pair  of  gloves  on  her  hands,  while  her  school- 
fellows wait  the  completion  of  the  humble  toilet.  A  touching  subject  this, 
and  worked  out  with  a  refinement  of  feeling  and  of  artistic  quality  most 
commendable.  The  year  did  not  close  without  seeing  Mr.  Faed  elected  a 
Royal  Academician.  He  is  also  an  Honorary  Member  of  the  Royal  Scottish 
Academy. 

"  The  Last  of  the  Clan,"  exhibited  in  1865,  was,  perhaps,  the  best  work 
which  Mr.  Faed  had  put  forth  since  his  "  From  Dawn  to  Sunset."  "  A 
touching  story  is  here  told  of  the  last  small  remnant  of  a  once  great  and  power- 
ful clan The  subject  is  well  chosen  for  the  display  of  the  painter's 

specialities  ;  it  gives  him  the  opportunity  of  grouping  effectively  men  stricken 
in  years,  aged  women  bowed  in  sorrow,  maidens  melting  into  tears — cha- 
racters which  dispose  into  a  homely  and  heartfelt  picture  of  Scottish 
nationality." 

The  limited  space  at  our  command  obliges  us  to  rest  contented  with  the 
mention  of  "Ere  Care  Begins" — his  diploma  work,  painted  in  1866 — and 
"  Hide  and  Seek,"  the  .subject  of  one  of  our  engravings;  this  latter  has 
never,  we  believe,  been  exhibited :  it  presents  an  admirable  picture  of  cottage 
life,  and  has  been  introduced  to  show  the  style  and  special  powers  of  the 
artist. 

Some  few  more  works  must  be  enumerated:  "Homeless,"  exhibited  in 
1869;  "Violets  and  Primroses,"  in  1874;  "Little  Cold  Tootles,"  in  1877; 
"  Maggie  and  her  Friends,"  in  1878. 

We  have  offered  but  scanty  justice  to  an  artist  whose  genius  and  well- 
deserved  popularity  merit  more  ample  acknowledgment :    yet  what  can  be 


ii6  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

done  within  restricted  measurement  when  so  many  of  his  works  furnish  texts 
for  lengthened  discourse  ?  As  a  delineator  of  Scottish  life  in  its  more  humble 
phases,  he  will  always  rank  with  his  great  countryman  Wilkie  ;  and  we  think 
Mr.  Faed  would  acknowledge  a  higher  compliment  could  scarcely  be  paid 
him.  In  largeness  of  style  and  manner  he  has,  however,  the  advantage  over 
Wilkie. 


The  parents  of  Ford  Madox  Brown  happened  to  be  residing  in  Calais 
when  he  was  born,  in  1821.  His  grandfather  was  a  Scotch  physician  of  high 
repute  in  the  last  century,  some  of  whose  writings,  from  the  novel  theories 
propounded,  caused  as  much  controversy  in  the  medical  profession,  both 
here  and  on  the  Continent  of  Europe,  as  the  grandson's  pictures  have  done 
in  the  Art-circles  of  Great  Britain.  During  his  early  years  the  future  painter 
was  moving  about  with  his  parents — sometimes  on  the  Continent,  and  some- 
times in  England,  but  always  attracted  by  anything  in  the  form  of  a  picture, 
and  trying  to  copy  whatever  came  within  his  reach.  This  Art-tendency  was 
evidently  so  strong  that  it  was  thought  wise  to  foster  it,  and  at  the  age  of 
seven  a  master  initiated  him  into  the  first  principles  of  drawing ;  this  was  at 
Calais.  Seven  years  afterwards  he  was  placed  at  the  Academy  of  Bruges, 
then  under  the  directorship  of  Gregorius,  who  had  been  a  pupil  of  David ; 
but  his  more  serious  studies  commenced  a  year  afterwards  at  Ghent,  under 
another  of  David's  scholars.  Van  Hanselaer.  At  the  age  of  seventeen  he 
removed  to  Antwerp  and  entered  the  studio  of  Baron  Wappers,  director  of 
the  Academy  in  that  city ;  here  he  remained  two  years,  and  painted  several 
pictures,  one  of  which,  "  The  Giaour's  Confession,"  was  exhibited  at  the 
London  Royal  Academy  in  1841.  There  can  scarcely  be  a  doubt  that  Mr. 
Brown's  residence  in  Belgium,  where  so  many  of  the  works  of  the  old 
Flemish  painters  are  yet  to  be  seen,  had  considerable  influence  on  his  future 
style,  whatever  the  teachings  he  received  may  have  been  ;  but  it  is  Baron 
Wappers  whom  he  acknowledges  as  his  chief  guide  and  instructor. 

Leaving  Antwerp  he  came  to  England  for  a  short  time,  where  he  painted 
several  portraits ;  he  then  went  to  Paris,  and  stayed  there  three  years.  It 
was  at  this  time  that  the  Royal  Commission  for  decorating  the  Houses  of 
Parliament  with  paintings  and  sculptures  issued  its  invitations  for  artists  to 
compete.     Mr.   Brown  replied  by  contributing  three  cartoons — "Adam  and 


.V  .1  n  O  X     D  R  O  W  N.  117 

Eve,"  "Finding  the  Body  of  Harold,"  and  "The  Spirit  of  Justice."  In 
1845  he  proceeded  to  Rome  for  a  few  months;  less  for  study,  however, 
than  on  account  of  the  delicate  state  of  health  of  his  young  wife,  whom  he 
had  the  misfortune  to  lose,  in  Paris,  on  the  homeward  journey.  While  in 
Rome  he  designed  his  picture  of  "Chaucer  reading,"  subsequently  exhi- 
bited at  the  Royal  Academy.  Having  reached  London  once  more,  he  has 
since  made  it  his  residence. 

The  first  important  painting  Mr.  Madox  Brown  exhibited  in  London  was 
"  Wicklift"  reading  his  Translation  of  the  Bible  to  John  of  Gaunt  in  the 
presence  of  Chaucer  and  Gower,"  which  he  sent,  in  1848,  to  the  new 
gallery  opened  at  Hyde  Park  Corner  under  the  title  of  "The  Free  Exhibi- 
tion." The  picture  was  thus  spoken  of  in  the  An  Journal  at  the  time: — 
"  This  is  a  beautiful  and  valuable  production,  brought  forward  in  the  manner 
of  fresco,  with  a  marked  feeling  for  the  style  of  the  early  Florentine  school." 
To  the  same  gallery  he  sent  in  the  following  year  "Lear  and  Cordelia;  " 
representing  the  scene  at  Dover,  where  the  old  king  is  put  to  sleep,  while 
Cordelia,  with  many  others,  stands  watching  to  see  what  effect  the  strains 
of  music  may  have  on  his  maddened  brain.  It  is  a  picture  of  unquestion- 
able power  and  most  absorbing  interest;  and,  like  the  other,  manifests  a 
Pre-Raffaellite  tendency.  It  is  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Leathart,  of 
Newcastle-on-Tyne. 

With  the  exception  of  "  The  Giaour's  Confession,"  which  we  have  already 
mentioned,  the  principal  pictures  Mr.  Madox  Brown  has  exhibited  at  the 
Academy  are  "Geoffrey  Chaucer  reading  at  the  Court  of  Edward  III.," 
contributed  in  185 1  ;  "  Christ  washing  Peter's  Feet,"  and  "  The  Pretty  Baa- 
Lambs,"  in  1852;  and  "Waiting,"  in  1853.  The  "  Chaucer "  picture  is  a 
very  large  canvas,  showing  a  numerous  assemblage  of  figures,  life-size — "  a 
truly  magnificent  essay,  it  has  abundance  of  every  quality  necessary  to 
constitute  excellence  in  Art ;  it  is  original  and  independent  in  everything." 
The  Liverpool  Academy  awarded  to  it,  in  1859,  a  prize  of /50.  "Christ 
washing  Peter's  Feet  "  forms  one  of  our  illustrations  ;  it  also  gained  a  similar 
prize  at  Liverpool,  in  1856.  If  we  remember  rightly,  when  the  picture  was 
in  the  Academy  the  person  of  our  Saviour  was  represented  nude,  in  con- 
formity with  the  scriptural  narrative  recorded  by  St.  John,  that  Jesus,  "  rising 
from  supper,  laid  aside  his  garments."  Subsequently  the  artist  worked  upon 
it,  altering  it  in  many  respects,  and  clothing  the  figure  of  Christ :  this  change 


ii8  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

is  far  more  consonant  with  our  feeling-s  in  contemplating  the  work,  however 
opposed  it  may  be  to  the  prevalent  notion  of  the  meaning  of  the  Evangelist's 
words. 

But  the  public  has  not  been  without  an  opportunity  of  forming  an  estimate 
of  this  painter's  works,  for  in  the  year  1865  he  collected  nearly  one  hundred 
of  his  pictures — the  majority  being  lent  for  the  occasion  by  their  respective 
owners — and  exhibited  them  at  the  Egyptian  Hall.  Here  were  gathered  the 
results  of  more  than  twenty  years'  study  and  labour — historical  subjects, 
sacred  and  secular,  genre  pictures,  landscapes,  and  portraits — a  diversified 
gathering,  and  one  which  could  not  be  seen  without  interest  being  awakened 
by  it,  nor  without  admiration  of  the  man  who  had  worked  out  so  diligently 
and  practically  his  ideal  of  Art.  In  the  room  hung  his  "  Chaucer," 
"Wickliff,"  "Cordelia  and  Lear,"  "  Christ  washing  Peter's  Feet,"  "Parting 
of  Cordelia  and  her  Sisters,"  "Willelmus  Conquisator,"  a  duplicate  of  the 
cartoon  exhibited  in  Westminster  Hall  under  the  title  of  "The  Body  of 
Harold  brought  before  William  the  Conqueror,"  "  King  Rene's  Honey- 
moon," "  The  Death  of  Sir  Tristram,"  from  the  Mort  d^ Artlnir,  "  Parasina's 
Sleep,"  "Manfred  on  the  Jungfrau,"  "The  Transfiguration,"  a  cartoon- 
design  for  a  stained-glass  window,  "  The  Infant's  Repast,"  "  Oure  Ladye  of 
Good  Children,"  "The  Pretty  Baa-Lambs,"  "The  Last  of  England," 
engraved  in  the  Aii  Journal  for  1870,  "An  English  Fireside  in  the  Winter 
of  1854 — 55,"  "The  Prisoner  of  Chillon,"  "Toothless,"  &c.,  &c.  Among 
the  landscapes  were  "Windermere,"  "An  English  Autumn  Afternoon," 
"Carrying  Corn,"  "  Winandermere,"  "The  Hayfield,"  "Southend,"  "On 
the  Brent,  Hendon,"  "  Walton-on-the-Naze,"  with  several  others.  But  the 
picture  which  attracted,  as  an  individual  example,  the  greatest  attention  from 
the  mass  of  visitors,  was  called  simply  "  Work,"  a  composition  so  full  of 
material  that  an  entire  page  might  be  devoted  to  description  and  comment 
without  exhausting  the  subject:  it  is  in  itself  a  "work"  showing  a  high 
development  of  thought  combined  with  most  careful  execution. 

Among  the  numerous  criticisms  this  exhibition  called  forth,  an  essay  by 
Mr.  W.  M.  Rossetti,  in  Frascr's  Magazine  for  May,  1865,  takes  a  most 
comprehensive  view,  both  philosophically  and  artistically,  of  Mr.  Madox 
Brown's  genius.  He  remarks  that  the  painter  has  passed  through  the  three 
"  successive  main  currents  of  influence  to  which  the  British  school  of  Art  has 
been   subjected  within   the   last  thirty  or  forty  years :   the  first  beginning  in 


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1842,  with  the  exhibition  of  cartoons  and  frescoes  in  Westminster  Hall ;  the 
second  dating  from  the  introduction  of  Pre-Raffaellitism,  six.  or  seven  years 
later ;  and  the  third  commencing  at  the  time  of  the  Paris  International 
Exhibition  in  1855,  when  the  example  of  foreign  schools,  and  especially  that 
of  France,  found  entrance  into  the  studios  of  many  of  our  painters."  He 
notes,  however,  that  Mr.  Brown  has  rather  led  than  followed  each  successive 
movement ;  and  all  who  have  studied  this  artist's  works  and  marked  their 
dates  must  acknowledge  such  to  be  the  case. 

To  the  list  of  pictures  given  above  may  be  added  others  of  more  recent 
date,  of  which  one  or  two  only  have  been  exhibited  in  London — "  The  Coat 
of  Many  Colours,"  painted  in  1866  for  Mr.  Rae,  of  Birkenhead,  exhibited  at 
Mr.  Gambart's  gallery,  and  also  at  Leeds;  "  Cordelia's  Portion,"  a  large 
water-colour  picture  painted  in  the  same  year  for  Mr.  Craven,  of  Manchester, 
exhibited  at  the  Dudley  Gallery  and  at  Leeds;  "The  Entombment," 
"  Jacopo  Foscari,"  and  "  Sardanapalus  and  Myrrha,"  all  three  water-colour 
drawings,  painted  for  Mr.  Craven  ;  the  last  was  exhibited  at  Liverpool  in 
1872  ;  it  is  a  small  work,  but  the  artist  ranks  it  among  his  best;  "  Elijah 
and  the  Widow's  Son,"  another  commission  from  Mr.  Craven,  and  painted 
from  the  finished  sketch  exhibited  at  the  Egyptian  Hall  in  1865;  a  replica 
of  the  "Chaucer"  subject,  with  alterations,  painted  for  Mr.  Leyland, 
of  Speke  Hall  ;  for  whom  also  the  "  Haidee  and  Don  Juan,"  here 
engraved,  was  produced.  "Romeo  and  Juliet"  was  painted  in  1870,  for 
Mr.  Leathart. 

Few,  if  any,  of  Mr.  Madox  Brown's  pictures  have  appeared  at  the  London 
public  galleries  for  more  than  twenty  years,  excepting  perhaps  one  or 
two  water-colours  which  he  has  occasionally  contributed  to  the  Dudley 
Gallery. 

The  pictures  engraved  here  are  simple  compositions,  if  we  compare  them 
with  several  others  where  very  numerous  figures  are  introduced ;  still,  the 
least  pretentious  of  his  works  must  convince  any  unprejudiced  mind  that  he  is 
an  artist  of  great  intellectual  grasp,  bringing  the  powers  of  a  thoughtful  and 
vigorous  mind  to  bear  upon  his  subject  in  a  spirit  that  sets  at  nought  all 
prettinesses  ;  a  realist  rather  than  an  idealist,  carrj'ing  out  his  theories  in  a 
manner  the  reverse  of  conciliating  the  mere  dilettanti,  yet  commending  itself 
to  all  who  can  penetrate  through  the  surface  of  a  picture  into  its  motives  and 
expression,  even  though  irs  individual  characters  are  occasionally  found  to  be 


120  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

clothed  in  a  garb  of  mediaeval  quaintness,  and  personal  beauty  is  sometimes 
necessarily  disregarded. 

Sir  Joseph  Noel  Paton  has  taken  a  high  position  in  the  Scottish  school, 
of  which,  generally,  we  can  scarcely  write  in  terms  too  commendatory.  He 
was  born  at  Dunfermline,  on  the  13th  December,  1821.  Although  his  Art- 
education  was,  so  to  speak,  of  the  most  desultory  kind,  the  circumstances  of 
his  childhood  and  early  youth  tended  in  no  ordinary  way  to  the  development 
of  his  artistic  perceptions.  His  father — a  Fellow  of  the  Scottish  Society  of 
Antiquaries,  and  well  known  in  connection  with  the  damask  manufactures 
of  Dunfermline,  and  as  a  collector  of  Scottish  antiquities — surrounded  his 
children,  from  their  earliest  years,  with  old  books,  old  prints,  old  pictures, 
casts  from  the  antique,  and  whatever  objects  could  stimulate  the  imagination 
and  expand  the  mind.  The  locality  in  which  the  family  resided.  Wooers' 
Alley — a  small  but  secluded  and  singularly  picturesque  spot,  one  of  the 
bends  of  the  glen  wherein  stand  the  venerable  ruins  of  the  Abbey  and  Royal 
Palace  of  Dunfermline,  with  its  burn,  rocks,  trees,  and  laurel  thickets — was 
calculated  to  encourage  romantic  habits  of  thought,  and  to  foster  a  passion 
for  the  minuter  beauties  of  inanimate  nature,  which,  it  is  evident,  has  to  a 
considerable  extent  tinged  all  his  productions.  Another  circumstance  may 
be  alluded  to  as  aiding  in  the  developing  a  constitutional  tendency  to  the 
more  romantic  phases  of  Art.  Through  his  mother,  a  lady  of  great  nobility 
and  unselfishness  of  character,  who,  like  most  Highlanders  of  her  time, 
whether  male  or  female,  was  deeply  versed  in  traditional  lore.  Sir  Noel  could 
claim  close  kinship  with  the  chiefs  of  one  of  the  most  ancient  and  chivalrous 
clans  of  the  North,  whose  deeds  of  daring  in  the  Jacobite  ranks  supplied  the 
earliest  subjects  for  his  childish  pencil,  and  a  knowledge  of  whose  position  as 
the  representatives  of  the  ancient  Celtic  Earls  of  AthoU — and,  through  them, 
of  the  family  which  occupied  the  throne  of  Scotland  from  the  eleventh  to  the 
fourteenth  century,  and  from  whom,  through  Robert  the  Bruce,  the  Stuart 
race  was  descended — could  scarcely  fail  to  exercise  an  influence  on  the 
character,  habits  of  thought,  and  feeling  of  a  youth  so  constituted,  and  sur- 
rounded by  everything  calculated  to  foster  such  tendencies. 

We  have  in  these  preliminary  remarks  somewhat  of  a  key  to  the  after 
career  of  this  painter.  In  1843  Noel  Paton  came  to  London  and  studied 
for  a    short    time    in    the    schools  of  the   Ro}-al    Academy,  receiving   from 


NOEL     PA  TON.  12. 

Mr.  George  Jones,  R.A.,  then  Keeper,  much  kindness  and  courtesy.  His 
artistic  teachings  began  and  terminated  with  the  instruction  given  by 
Mr.  Jones.  Before  the  period  just  alluded  to  he  had,  however,  exhibited 
some  proofs  of  early  talent  in  illustrations,  supplied  gratuitously,  for  the 
Renfrewshire  Annual  for  the  years  184 1-2.  On  his  return  to  Scotland  he 
painted  and  sent  to  the  Royal  Scottish  Academy,  "Ruth  gleaning,"  his  first 
exhibited  painting;  this  was  in  1844,  when  he  also  produced  a  series  of 
designs,  in  outline,  illustrating  respectively  Shelley's  "  Prometheus  bound," 
and  The  Tempest ;  these  were  etched  and  published  through  the  liberality 
of  Mr.  Lewis  Pocock,  F.S.A.  The  year  1845  was  marked  by  the  cartoon 
exhibition  in  Westminster  Hall.  Young  as  the  artist  of  whom  we  are  writing 
then  was,  he  boldly  entered  into  competition  with  many  of  the  most  eminent 
painters  of  the  day,  and  not  without  justification,  for  the  Royal  Commissioners 
awarded  to  him  one  of  the  three  prizes  of  two  hundred  pounds  for  his  cartoon 
of  "The  Spirit  of  Religion,"  a  work  which  showed  a  mind  richly  endowed 
with  poetic  imagination,  and,  at  the  same  time,  evinced  an  amount  of 
technical  attainment  which  called  forth  the  favourable  notice  of  some  of  the 
most  distinguished  artists  of  the  time.  In  this  year  he  also  executed  a  series 
of  etchings,  illustrating  the  late  James  Wilson's  poem,  "Silent  Love,"  and 
about  this  time  he  made  several  admirable  drawings  for  Mr.  S.  C.  Hall's 
"  Book  of  British  Ballads." 

Passing  over  two  charming  illustrations  of  fairy-land — a  world  with  which 
Sir  N.  Paton  has  frequently  made  us  acquainted — "The  Quarrel  of  Oberon 
and  Titania,"  exhibited  at  the  Scottish  Academy  in  1846,  and  "  Puck  and 
Fairy,"  in  the  same  galler}'-  the  following  year,  we  again  arrive  at  Westminster 
Hall,  where,  also  in  1847,  another  competitive  display  was  opened  to  the 
public,  that  of  oil-paintings.  To  this  he  contributed  two  works,  "  The  Recon- 
ciliation of  Oberon  and  Titania,"  and  "Christ  bearing  the  Cross."  For 
these  joint  productions,  so  dissimilar  in  character,  yet  each  with  merits 
peculiar  to  itself,  he  received  one  of  the  three  prizes  of  three  hundred  pounds. 
The  former  of  the  two  pictures  was  purchased  in  the  most  liberal  spirit  by  the 
Royal  Scottish  Academy,  and  is  now  in  their  gallery.  In  this  year  he  was 
elected  Associate  of  that  institution.  To  its  annual  exhibitions  he  sent,  in 
1850,  the  year  in  which  he  was  enrolled  Member  of  the  Scottish  Academy, 
"  The  Quarrel  of  Oberon  and  Titania  ;  "  in  185 1,  "  Thomas  the  Rhymer  and 
the  Queen  of  Fairie"   (engraved),  and  "  Nimrod  the  Mighty  Hunter;"   in 

R 


122  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

1852,  "Dante  meditating  the  Episode  of  Francesca  da  Rimini,"  "The  Eve 
of  St.  Agnes  ;  "  "  Flight  of  the  Lovers,"  and  a  beautiful  specimen  of  sculpture, 
a  basso-relievo  representing  "  Christ  blessing  Little  Children."  The  "  Oberon 
and  Titania"  picture  just  mentioned  is  a  different  work  from  that  of  1846, 
and  was  bought  for  the  Scottish  National  Gallery  by  the  Royal  Association 
for  the  Promotion  of  the  Fine  Arts  in  Scotland. 

In  1855  he  contributed  the  grand  composition  of  "  The  Pursuit  of 
Pleasure,"  now  well  known  from  the  large  engraving  of  it.  Critics — who  are 
not  always  reliable  judges — are  sometimes  found  to  express  very  contrary 
opinions  of  the  same  work ;  and  this  picture  was  not  exempt  from  such  fiery 
ordeal.  But,  estimated  by  results,  it  found  special  favour  with  the  public ; 
for  Mr.  Hill,  the  eminent  print-publisher  of  Edinburgh,  bought  it  for  one 
thousand  pounds,  had  it  engraved,  and  cleared  a  very  considerable  sum  by 
the  prints,  which  were  largely  subscribed  for ;  having  previously  disposed  of 
it  for  two  thousand  guineas  to  Mr.  Graham  Briggs,  of  Barbadoes. 

Hitherto,  with  the  exception  of  the  works  sent  to  Westminster  Hall,  Sir 
Noel  Paton  had  not  exhibited  in  London;  but  in  1856  he  commenced 
contributing  to  our  Royal  Academy,  thus  affording  the  English  public  the 
opportunity  of  becoming  acquainted  with  the  productions  of  an  artist  of  whom 
they  knew  little,  save  by  reputation.  The  first  of  these,  "  Home,"  was 
designated  by  Mr.  Ruskin  "a  most  pathetic  and  precious  picture."  "The 
Bluidy  Triste,"  and  "In  Memoriam,"  exhibited  in  1858,  found  less  favour 
with  this  fastidious  critic,  but  mainly  on  the  ground  of  the  gloominess  of  the 
subjects ;  and  it  may  be  noticed  that  unless  the  artist  invades  fairyland,  the 
themes  of  his  pictures  are  more  frequently  sad  than  cheerful ;  even  his 
"Hesperus"  (i860),  two  lovers  seated  at  eventide  on  a  mossy  bank,  and 
"  Dawn — Luther  at  Erfurt,"  have  each  a  tinge  of  melancholy  too  obvious  to 
be  overlooked;  while  his  "Mors  Janua  Vitse"  (1866),  though  designed  to 
convey  the  most  cheering  doctrines  of  the  Christian  faith,  is  not  altogether 
free  from  this  tinge  of  sadness. 

We  are  reluctantly  compelled  to  pass  over  many  works  we  should  gladly 
speak  of,  in  order  to  say  a  few  words  on  those  that  form  the  subjects  of  our 
illustrations.  Tennyson's  noble  poem  supplied  the  subject  of  the  first  picture, 
"  Morte  d' Arthur,"  engraved  here.  It  is  a  grand  theme,  treated  with  a 
feeling  akin  to  that  of  the  poet's  conception,  and  with  great  artistic  power. 

The  second  of  these,  "  I  wonder  who  lived  in  there !  "  will  be  remembered 


a:  . 

s  I 

M  Is 

O  -h 


BE  A  VIS.  123 

by  many  as  in  the  Royal  Academy  exhibition  of  i865.  The  composition  is 
not  an  ideal  one,  but,  as  we  have  heard,  is  the  representation  of  a  fact.  The 
scene  is  the  artist's  studio,  in  which,  on  entering  one  day,  he  saw  his  young 
son,  chin  on  hand,  "glowering"  into  an  old  helmet,  with  eyes  full  of  the 
stories  of  chivalry  he  had  been  taught  or  had  read.  "  I  wonder  who  lived  in 
there!"  was  the  boy's  remark  to  his  father.  The  incident  could  scarcely 
fail  to  attract  the  special  notice  of  a  mind  so  constituted  as  that  of  the  latter, 
who  saw  at  once  how  well  adapted  it  was  for  a  picture  both  original  and 
pleasing ;  the  result  is  before  us. 

These  two  compositions  serve  to  exhibit  the  mediaeval  and  chivalric 
"groove"  in  which  the  painter's  mind  is  found  so  often  to  run.  His  pictures, 
whatever  the  subject,  are  always  poetical,  yet  are  realistic  in  treatment;  and 
he  may  fairly  lay  claim  to  the  royal  and  academic  honours  respectively  which 
have  been  awarded  him.  In  1866  the  Queen  appointed  him  her  "  Limner 
for  Scotland,"  and  the  year  following  conferred  on  him,  at  Windsor,  the 
honour  of  knighthood.  But  it  is  not  only  as  an  artist  that  Sir  Noel  Paton 
has  won  reputation;  his  two  published  books,  "  Poems  by  a  Painter,"  which 
appeared  in  1862,  and  "Spindrift,"  in  1866,  were  both  most  favourably 
noticed  by  the  press  in  England  and  Scotland.  "  Oskold  and  the  Ellemaids," 
exhibited  at  the  Royal  Scottish  Academy  in  1874,  is  the  most  widely  known 
of  the  artist's  later  works.  In  common  with  many  of  his  other  pictures,  it 
points  out  how  high  his  aims  have  been  ;  in  the  choice  of  subjects  for  painting 
he  has  not  on  a  single  occasion  that  we  can  recall  underrated  his  own 
abilities ;  and  if  he  has  sometimes  attempted  things  too  hard  for  him,  at 
others  lofty  subjects  have  drawn  out  powers  that  could  certainly  have  been 
manifested  in  no  other  way.  Oskold  is  the  embodiment  of  a  pilgrim  soul 
fighting  his  way  through  the  perils  of  a  false  world :  the  Ellemaids  are 
representative  of  the  five  senses,  beautiful  Sirens  bent  on  the  cavalier's  ruin 
through  their  many  glittering  temptations. 

The  "Good  Shepherd,"  the  property  of  her  Majesty  the  Queen,  and 
"  Caliban  listening  to  the  Music,"  were  at  the  Paris  Exposition  of  1878. 


Richard  Beavis  was  born,  in  1824,  at  Exmouth,  though  the  early  years 
of  his  life  were  passed  at  Sidmouth.  It  is  possible  this  residence  in  a  pic- 
turesque seaside  town  had  considerable  influence  on  the  future  direction  of  his 


124  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

art.  The  childhood  of  most  painters  offers  very  nearly  the  same  features — 
the  struggles  of  the  mind  to  develope  itself  everywhere  and  at  all  times,  in 
season  and  out  of  season.  Born,  as  it  were,  with  a  pencil  in  hand,  no  oppor- 
tunity is  lost  of  employing  it,  and  too  often  to  the  prejudice  of  all  domestic 
proprieties.  Before  little  Beavis  was  eight  years  old  the  walls  of  his  bedroom 
were  covered,  so  far  as  his  childish  hands  could  reach,  with  a  species  of 
hieroglyphics  assuming  to  represent  ships  and  boats,  horses  and  carts,  and 
everything  else  which  suggested  itself  to  the  boy's  imagination.  There  were 
in  Sidmouth  at  that  time  two  booksellers'  shops,  in  the  windows  of  which 
some  engravings  were  displayed ;  these  were,  of  course,  very  attractive  to 
the  embryo  artist,  who,  as  we  have  heard  him  say,  would  stand  long  at  the 
window,  studying  one  of  the  prints  till  the  subject  was  tolerably  well 
impressed  on  his  mind,  when  he  hurried  home  and  tried  to  draw  it  from 
memory,  repeating  his  visits  till  the  copy  was  rendered  as  complete  as  the 
circumstances  would  allow.  But  parental  authority  opposed  itself  to  all  such 
aspirations  after  Art  life  :  the  boy's  father  had  other  views  for  him.  And, 
moreover,  held  to  the  opinion  that  it  was  a  very  doubtful  mode  of  earning  a 
livelihood,  relating  a  story,  by  way  of  confirmation,  that  he  "  once  knew  a 
portrait-painter  who  never  had  a  shilling  in  his  pocket,  or  a  shoe  to  his  foot." 
No  wonder  that  with  such  wide  experience  of  artistic  life  the  elder  Beavis 
should  seek  to  nip  in  the  bud  every  desire  the  son  might  have  to  become  a 
painter.  Nevertheless  the  latter  could  never  relinquish  the  hope  of  some 
day  being  able  to  accomplish  his  wishes ;  and  so,  while  following  other 
occupations  through  the  day,  he  would  rise  in  the  morning  with  the  sun  and 
work  away  with  his  pencil  in  the  best  way  he  could. 

Thus  matters  went  on  till  1846,  when  some  gentlemen  of  the  town,  who 
had  shown  him  much  kindness  and  encouraged  his  untaught  efforts,  suggested 
to  him  the  advisability  of  entering  as  a  student  in  the  then  School  of  Design 
at  Somerset  House,  and  they  took  such  steps  as  were  necessary  to  accomplish 
the  plan.  The  result  was,  that  in  the  summer  of  that  year  Mr.  Beavis  arrived 
in  London,  with  a  few  pounds  and  several  letters  of  introduction  in  his  pocket, 
and  with  many  hearty  good  wishes  of  his  Sidmouth  friends  for  his  success. 

The  day  following  his  arrival  in  London  Mr.  Beavis  was  duly  installed  as 
a  student  at  Somerset  House.  Six  weeks  after  his  arrival  a  premium  was 
awarded  to  him  for  outline  drawing,  which  he  had  studied  under  the  late 
Mr.  Alfred  Stevens,  then  one  of  the   masters.     All   the  Art  education   Mr. 


B  E  A  V  r  S.  125 

Beavis  received,  beyond  what  he  taught  hunself,  was  acquired  at  that  institu- 
tion :  he  speaks  of  the  teaching  there  as  being  in  every  way  excellent  and 
most  conducive  to  its  required  purpose. 

He  soon,  however,  began  to  find  that  it  was  r[uite  necessary  he  should 
get  some  employment  to  enable  him  to  maintain  himself:  so  he  managed  to 
turn  what  little  of  Art  he  as  yet  knew  to  some  profitable  account,  by  painting 
portraits,  putting  skies  and  figures  into  architectural  drawings,  and  occasion- 
ally executing  some  decorative  Art  work :  thus  he  contrived  to  keep  his  head 
fairly  above  water  till  the  spring  of  1850,  when  he  became  artist  to  Messrs. 
TroUope,  the  well-known  upholsterers  and  decorators,  of  Parliament  Street. 
With  them  he  remained  thirteen  years,  during  which  time  the  firm  competed 
successfully  in  three  international  exhibitions  with  works  from  his  designs. 
It  may  here  be  mentioned  that  the  first  works  Mr.  Beavis  exhibited  at  the 
Royal  Academy  were,  in  1855,  ^  design  for  a  boudoir  ceiling  at  Harewood 
House,  Yorkshire;  in  1858,  a  design  for  a  painted  ceiling  of  a  drawing-room 
in  the  same  mansion  ;  and  in  i860,  a  design  for  decorating  a  drawing-room 
ceiling  near  Sittingbourne,  Kent :  works  which  his  employers  had  then  on 
hand. 

In  the  early  years  of  his  connection  with  the  firm  he  continued  to  attend 
the  Somerset  House  schools  in  the  evening,  principally  giving  attention  to 
those  branches  of  Art  most  applicable  to  decorative  purposes  :  in  the  summer- 
time he  would  rise  early,  get  out  into  the  parks  or  about  Kensington  to 
sketch,  or  perhaps  work  in  his  own  painting-room  at  home,  till  it  was  time  to 
go  to  his  other  studio  in  Parliament  Street.  During  the  latter  period  of  his 
engagement  with  the  Messrs.  Trollope  he  arranged  with  them  only  for  a 
portion  of  his  time ;  the  remainder  he  applied  to  his  own  improvement  in 
painting,  both  in  oil  and  water-colours.  At  the  British  Institution  appeared 
a  few  small  pictures  by  Mr.  Beavis,  painted  when  thus  working  at  half-time, 
so  to  speak.  In  1862  he  sent  two  pictures,  also  small,  to  the  Royal  Academy, 
and  both  were  hung;  one  was  "  A  Mountain  Rill,"  the  other  "  Fishermen 
picking  up  Wreck  at  Sea,"  an  upright  canvas,  now  in  the  possession  of 
Mr.  Peter  Stuart,  Seaforth,  near  Liverpool.  Encouraged  by  the  success  of 
these  works,  he  ventured  to  send  in  the  following  year  a  somewhat  larger 
picture,  called  only  "  In  North  Wales;"  it  represented  a  mountain-stream  in 
that  part  of  the  Principality,  and  was  bought  on  the  private  view  day  by  the 
late  Sir  David  Solomons. 


126  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Mr.  Beavis  now  felt  himself  sufficiently  strong  to  pursue  his  road  without 
such  extraneous  help  as  had  hitherto  aided  his  onward  progress.  His  pictures 
were  not  only  looked  at,  but  inquired  for :  one  of  the  two  works  he  exhibited 
at  the  Academy  in  1864,  "The  Escape,"  was  engraved  in  the  Illustrated 
London  Nam.  In  the  year  immediately  following  appeared  the  first  of  that 
class  of  works  which  have  done  so  much  to  bring  this  artist  into  prominence  ; 
it  was  entitled,  "A  Military  Train  crossing  the  Sands  to  Elizabeth  Castle, 
Jersey;  "  it  was  painted  for  R.  P.  Harding,  and  is  now  in  the  collection  of 
that  gentleman.  In  1866  he  sent  to  the  Royal  Academy  "Drawing  Timber 
in  Picardy,"  which  attracted  the  attention  of  a  prizeholder  in  the  London  Art 
Union  Society,  who  purchased  it  at  the  price  of  ^250:  an  engraving  of  it 
appeared  in  the  Illustrated  London  News  about  that  time. 

In  1867  and  1868  Mr.  Beavis  was  living  near  Boulogne,  it  may  be  pre- 
sumed for  the  purpose  chiefly  of  sketching  the  coast  scenery  of  that  portion 
as  well  as  of  other  parts  of  the  country :  and  either  in  those  years,  or  some- 
what later,  he  travelled  into  Holland  with  the  same  object.  One  of  the 
earliest  fruits  of  this  foreign  sojourn  was  exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  the 
former  of  the  years  just  mentioned  ;  its  title  was  "  Loading  Sand — Pas  de 
Calais — Threatening  Weather."  In  the  latter  year  appeared  a  Dutch  scene, 
"  High  Tide— Mouth  of  the  Maas,"  painted  for  Mr.  R.  P.  Harding.  Of  two 
paintings  exhibited  in  1872,  one  bore  the  same  title,  "Collecting  Wreck  on 
the  French  Coast — Ambleteuse,"  as  that  engraved  here,  but  the  design 
is  totally  different.  Here  the  treatment  is  very  similar  to  other  compo- 
sitions of  the  same  kind  from  the  pencil  of  the  artist  :  a  large  expanse  of 
stormy  sky,  broken  at  intervals  by  clouds  lighted  up  by  the  sun  ;  the  lights 
repeated  on  certain  portions  of  the  landscape,  &c.  Such  management  of 
materials  is  generally  very  effective,  and  is  certainly  so  in  the  work  we  have 
engraved,  which  was  never  exhibited.  His  only  contribution  to  the  Academy 
in  1873  was  an  exceedingly  well-painted  picture,  "  The  Shore  at  Scheven- 
ingen — Waiting  for  the  Boats,"  bought  at  the  private  view  by  Mr.  T.  Taylor, 
Hyde  Park  Gardens.  Holland  also  gave  to  the  artist  subjects  for  two  out  of 
the  three  pictures  he  sent  to  the  Academy  in  1874 ;  the  titles  of  the  two  were, 
"A  Ferry-boat  in  Old  Holland  "  and  "  Bringing  up  Nets  at  Scheveningen." 

In  1875  we  missed  the  artist  from  the  walls  of  the  Academy.  It  appears 
that  in  the  autumn  of  1874  Mr.  Beavis's  health  had  failed,  and  he  was  advised 
to  try  a  thorough  change  of  air  and  scene.     He  had  often  felt  a  strong  desire 


M  A  R  K  S. 


>27 


to  visit  the  East,  and  so  he  resolved  to  carr^'  out  his  wishes.  Accordingly,  in 
the  early  part  of  the  following  year  (1875)  he  set  out  for  Egypt,  travelling  by 
easy  stages,  wa  Venice  and  Brindisi,  to  Alexandria,  and  thence  to  Cairo.  After 
staying  a  few  days  in  the  last-named  place  he  started  on  a  caravan  journey 
across  the  Desert  to  Mount  Sinai,  sketching  many  objects  and  places  on  his 
way.  During  his  six  months'  trip  he  found  time  to  visit  Jaffa,  Jerusalem 
and  the  vicinity,  Jericho,  the  Jordan,  and  the  Dead  Sea.  On  his  return 
home — his  health  quite  re-established — he  lost  no  time  in  making  use 
of  what  he  had  seen  and  noted  down  of  Arab  and  Syrian  life,  as  was 
evidenced  in  the  two  pictures  he  sent  to  the  Royal  Academy's  exhibition 
of  1876,  one  of  which  we  have  here  engraved.  It  represents  a  "  Bedawcen 
Caravan  on  the  Road  to  Mount  Sinai  ;  "  the  caravan  is  descending  the 
high  ground  at  Wady  Ghurundel.  To  the  list  of  his  pictures  we  must  add, 
"  Ploughing  in  Lower  Egypt,"  painted  in  1876  ;  "  Threshing-floor  at  Gilgal," 
a  memento  of  his  travels  in  the  East,  and  "  In  the  Forest  at  Fontaine- 
bleau,"  in  1877  ;  with  "  Halt  of  Prince  Charles  Edward  after  the  Battle  of 
Culloden,"  in  1878.  Allusion  has  been  made  to  Mr.  Beavis  as  a  water-colour 
artist:  we  may  remark  that  in  1867  the  Institute  of  Painters  in  Water-Colours 
paid  him  the  compliment  of  inviting  him  to  join  the  society  without  the  usual 
process  of  competition  ;  and  he  has  since  exhibited  many  very  clever  and 
interesting  works  in  the  gallerj^'  of  the  Institute,  though  his  sympathies  are 
far  more  strongly  with  oil-paintings. 

We  cannot  call  Mr.  Beavis  a  disciple  of  any  particular  school,  nor  a 
follower  of  any  special  artist ;  he  is  a  close  and  diligent  student  of  nature 
alone,  and  works  out  his  subjects — and  they  are  varied — with  taste,  judgment, 
and  skilful  execution. 

Henry  Stacy  Marks  was  born  in  London,  on  the  13th  of  September, 
1829.  After  receiving  an  ordinary  education  at  school  he  assisted  his  father, 
who  was  engaged  in  the  carriage  trade.  The  occupation,  however,  was  but 
little  suited  to  his  tastes,  and,  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  he  entered  the  academy 
of  Mr.  Leigh,  in  Newman  Street.  Three  years  afterwards  Mr.  Marks  began 
seriously  to  study  painting  with  the  view  of  making  it  his  profession  :  he 
became  a  student  in  the  Royal  Academy,  and  also  continued  his  attendance 
at  Mr.  Leigh's.  In  the  early  part  of  the  year  1852  he  went — with  his  friend, 
Mr.   Calderon,   R.A. — to  Paris,  and  .studied  for  a  year  in  the  atilicr  of  M. 


,28  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Picot ;  and  he  also  gained  admission  as  student  to  the  Ecole  des  Beaux- Arts ; 
thus  completing  the  round  of  technical  artistic  education,  and  acquiring 
knowledge  as  well  from  the  French  school  as  from  that  of  his  own  country. 

In  1853  Mr.  Marks  made  his  first  appearance  in  our  exhibition  galleries. 
In  the  spring  of  that  year  he  had  sent  to  the  British  Institution  a  single  half- 
length  figure  of  Shakspere's  "Dogberry;"  but  the  "hanging  committee" 
failed  to  appreciate  its  merits,  and  the  picture  was  rejected.  Nothing  daunted 
by  what,  to  a  young  artist  especially,  could  only  prove  a  sad  disappointment, 
he  tried  his  fortune  with  it  at  the  Royal  Academy,  where  it  was  received, 
obtained  a  good  position  on  the  walls,  and  was  favourably  noticed  by  many 
writers  for  the  press.  From  that  year  he  has  been  a  regular  contributor  to 
the  Academy. 

We    will    now   take  a  brief   glance   at   some   of  the  principal   pictures 
which  Mr.    Marks  has    exhibited    at    the    Academy,    where,   till  within    the 
last  few  years,  they  have  alone  appeared,  and   in   the   following   order: — 
Two    subjects,    "  Christopher  Sly "    and    "  Bardolph,"    exhibited    in     1854, 
and  "  Slender's  Courtship,"    contributed    in    the   year    following,   were    the 
earnest  of  the  array  of  humorous  subjects  which  succeeded  them.     "Tooth- 
ache  in    the  Middle   Ages,"   exhibited  in    1854,  represents  a  suffering  old 
man  in  the  costume  of,   probably,   the    time  of  Richard    II.      There  is  no 
reason  to  suppose  that  this  irritating  malady  was  less  virulent  in  its  tortures 
five  or  six  centuries  ago  than  it  is  now;  certainly  Mr.   Marks' s  well-painted 
yet  agonized  figure  would  provoke  a  smile  in  any  one  but  such  as  have  felt 
the  sharp  pangs  of  a  toothache.    We  have  no  notes  of  "  Bottom  as  Pyramus," 
his  solitary  contribution  to  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1857,  and  pass  on, 
therefore,  to   "  Dogberrj^'s  Charge  to    the  Watch,"    from  Much  Ado  about 
Nothing,  which  was  exhibited  in  1859,  and  was  the  means  of  attracting  more 
general  notice  to  the  works  of  this  artist  than  they  had  hitherto  gained ;  not 
more  because  the  picture  was  on  a  larger  scale  than  any  of  his  preceding 
contributions,  than  on  account  of  his  possessing,  from  the  number  of  figures, 
much  higher   interest.      The   guardians    of  the  city,  a  motley  group,  have 
mustered  to  receive  the  instructions  of  their  officer — "  You  shall  comprehend 
all  vagrom  men,"  &c.      One  of  the  "  good  men  and  true"  stands  forward  to 
ask,  "  How  if  he  will  not  stand  ?  "     This  is  a  most  grotesque  figure  ;  and  the 
whole  posse   comitatus,  with    diversified   Venetian  costumes  and  weapons  of 
varied  date,  is  full  of  appropriate  character :  all  are  capitally  painted. 


THE   FRANCISCAN   SCULPTOR  AND   HIS  ISIODEL. 
From  a  Fainting  hy  Ucnry  Stacy  Marias,  R.A. 


JfATiA'S.  129 

With  reference  to  this  artist's  "The  Franciscan  Sculptor  and  his  Model," 
the  picture  he  exhibited  in  1861,  and  which  we  have  chosen  for  one  of  our 
illustrations  of  his  works,  we  may  remark  that  the  subject,  so  far  as  we  know, 
is  original  in  thought,  and  its  development  may  be  equally  original  to  the 
artist.  In  itself  the  incident  is  simple,  like  that  of  all  really  good  pictures. 
A  brother  of  the  Franciscan  order,  combining  the  professions  of  monk  and 
sculptor,  is  bestowing  his  talent  on  the  ornamentation  of  one  of  those  ecclesias- 
tical edifices  which,  west  and  north,  came  through  the  Church,  declined  with 
the  Church,  and  is  again  reviving  under  the  same  influences.  A  comical- 
looking  old  man,  holding  a  bottle,  is  perched  on  a  scaftbld  erected  to  sustain 
the  model,  while  the  enthusiastic  monk  plies  his  vocation  with  extraordinary 
energy  and  earnestness,  unmoved  by  a  grotesqueness  in  his  "sitter"  which 
raises  the  risible  faculties  of  all  who  look  upon  this  picture,  a  feeling  in 
which  the  monks  ranged  along  the  flat  roof  of  the  edifice  appear  not  unwilling 
to  participate.  It  need  scarcely  be  said  that  this  clever  work  was  among  the 
most  attractive  in  the  gallery. 

From  the  life  studio  of  the  nascent  monaster}'  the  artist  passed,  in  1862, 
to  the  pleasure-ground  of  an  ancient  mansion,  where  are  assembled  the  family 
of  its  owner  and  a  rather  numerous  company  of  friends,  listening  to  "The 
Jester's  Text"  and  the  discourse  which  is  founded  thereon.  The  preacher, 
who  is  the  jester  of  the  household,  is  placed  near  a  sun-dial  bearing  the 
inscription,  Horas  non  nmncro  nisi  serenas,  which  forms  the  text  of  his  sermon  ; 
he  lays  his  hand  on  the  dial,  and  delivers  his  discourse  with  becoming  gravity, 
to  the  astonishment,  if  not  the  edification,  of  his  congregation,  which  dates 
back  to  about  the  sixteenth  century.     It  is  a  most  attractive  picture  of  its  kind. 

In  a  picture  bearing  the  title  of  "How  Shakspere  Studied,"  exhibited  in 
1863,  Mr.  ]\Iarks  represents  the  dramatist  seated  within  the  porch  of  a  house 
of  the  poet's  period,  and  looking  out  upon  the  busy  world  passing  to  and  fro 
in  the  street,  "taking  notes"  of  some  whose  characters  and  descriptions  are 
now  probably  well  known  to  us.  There  is  much  of  what  we  may  obviously 
take  as  literal  truth  in  this  composition  of  many  figures,  all  well  studied  by 
the  painter,  and  most  carefully  put  on  the  canvas. 

In  1864  Mr.  Marks  contributed  to  the  Academy  three  pictures — "  Doctors 
differ;  "  "Say  not  to  thy  neighbour,  Go,  and  come  again,  and  to-morrow  I 
will  give,  when  thou  hast  it  by  thee  ;  "  and  "  The  House  of  Pra3'er."  The 
title  of  the  second,  and  remembering  whence  it  is  taken,  would  almost  suggest 

s 


ijo  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

the  subject  to  be  a  sacred  one ;  but  the  picture  represents  the  shop-door  of 
a  burly-looking  baker,  whom  a  poor  blind  musician  endeavours  ineftectually 
to  soften  into  charity  by  his  melodious,  or  unmelodious,  strains.  The  scene 
is  a  French  street  peopled  with  various  groups  of  figures,  all  painted  with  "a 
quaint  and  severe  naturalism."  "The  House  of  Prayer"  differs  greatly 
from  the  artist's  usual  subjects,  and  is  a  very  touching  and  covetable  picture. 
An  old  woman  with  a  child  by  her  side  is  seated  in  the  aisle  of  an  ancient 
Gothic  church,  in  which  the  tomb  of  a  mitred  prelate  forms  a  prominent  feature. 
The  productions  of  the  next  )^ear  were  "  Francis  Feeble,  the  Woman's 
Tailor,"  a  composition  from  the  old  nursery  song — 

"  Hark  !  liark  !  the  dogs  do  bark, 
The  beggars  are  coming  to  to\vn ;  " — 

a  subject  affording  the  artist  ample  scope  for  humorous  representation  allied 
with  the  miserable,  real  or  feigned.  "My  Lady's  Page  in  Disgrace"  was 
exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  1866,  and  in  the  following  year  "  Falstafif' s  Own" 
— a  picture  of  some  repute. 

In  1 87 1  he  was  elected  an  Associate  of  the  Royal  Academy,  contributing 
in  this  year  "  The  Book-worm."  This  was  followed  by,  amongst  others,  "A 
Peep  of  the  Avon,"  in  1873;  "The  Latest  Fashion,"  in  1874;  "  The  Apo- 
thecary," in  1876;  and  "Convocation,"  in  1878.  Two  of  his  works,  "The 
Ornithologist"  and  "The  Three  Jolly  Post-boys,"  were  at  Philadelphia  in 
1876;  while  "The  Apothecary,"  "St.  Francis  and  the  Birds,"  and  "The 
Princess  and  the  Pelican"  (water  colour),  appeared  at  Paris  in  1878.  Mr. 
Marks  attained  to  the  full  honours  of  the  Academy  in  1879. 

One  of  our  engraved  examples,  "The  Missal  Painter,"  has,  we  believe, 
never  been  exhibited.  Seated  at  his  desk,  with  colours  and  pencils  within 
convenient  reach,  the  artist-monk — and  how  much  of  Art  and  literature  we  of 
the  present  day  owe  to  those  recluses  whose  cells  and  cloisters  were  the 
studios  of  all  learning  ! — has  submitted  his  labours  to  the  inspection  of  two  of 
the  brotherhood,  while  he  indulges  in  a  yawn  that  shows  he  must  have  passed 
some  weary  hours  over  the  work.  There  is  a  touch  of  genuine  humour  in 
this  truly  characteristic  scene  which  requires  no  stretch  of  imagination  to 
discover. 

But  in  addition  to  the  pictures  exhibited  at  the  Royal  Academy,  Mr, 
Marks  has  been  a  valuable  contributor  to  the   Dudley  Gallery,  the   com- 


"V,  V"  K,  ^^r~ 


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VEAMES.  iji 

mittee  of  which  he  jouied  in  1866.  Among  his  various  drawings  hung  in 
the  gallery  may  be  pointed  out  "Orpheus  charming  the  Brutes,"  "  Jack  o' 
Lantern,"  "  May-day  in  the  Olden  Time,"  "The  Princess  and  the  Pelican," 
&c.  :  all  of  them  works  of  a  very  high  character.  In  the  exhibitions  of 
oil  pictures  which  have  been  held  in  the  same  rooms  since  1868  he  has 
appeared  in  "  Tired  out,"  "  The  Tinker,"  &c. 

In  the  early  period  of  his  career  Mr.  Marks  employed  much  of  his  time 
in  designing  figures  and  subjects  for  firms  engaged  in  the  production  of 
stained  glass.  Possibly  to  this  circumstance  may  be  traced  the  prevalence 
of  medijevalism  in  his  pictures  on  canvas,  &c.  And  since  those  early  days, 
and  since  his  fame  as  an  artist  has  been  fully  established,  he  has  not  for- 
sworn merely  decorative  Art.  In  the  Albert  Hall  of  Arts  and  Sciences  he 
has  designed  that  portion  of  the  frieze  in  which  appear  the  allegorical 
designs  representing  Agriculture,  Horticulture,  Astronomy,  Navigation, 
&c.  ;  and  he  also  executed  one  of  the  lunettes,  "The  Study  of  Anatomy," 
in  the  "competition"  gallery.  South  Kensington  Museum;  the  picture  of 
a  mediaeval  king  and  queen  witnessing  a  masque,  over  the  proscenium  of 
the  Gaiety  Theatre ;  a  somewhat  similar  decoration,  Shakspere  surrounded 
by  his  creations,  for  the  Prince's  Theatre,  Manchester;  and  some  clever 
allegorical  figures  of  the  Virtues,  on  Incised  gold  ground,  for  Crewe  Hall, 
Cheshire. 


Whether  birthplace  and  Art  education  strictly  entitle  Mr.  Yeames  to  be 
regarded  as  an  English  painter  may  be  matter  of  opinion  ;  but  whatever  the 
story  of  his  early  life,  he  is  recognised  as  such,  and  has  every  right  to  be  so 
considered. 

His  native  place  Is  Taganrog,  a  town  situated  on  the  Sea  of  Azof,  in 
Southern  Russia;  the  date  of  his  birth  December  i8th,  1835.  ^^'s  father,  a 
merchant  in  Taganrog,  held  the  post  of  British  consul  there.  The  family 
originally  belonged  to  the  county  of  Norfolk.  The  earliest  years  of  the  future 
artist  are  associated  In  his  mind  with  much  travelling,  not  only  In  his  native 
land,  but  also  In  more  southern  parts  of  Europe.  Before  he  had  reached  the 
age  of  five,  his  father,  with  all  the  family,  started  from  Taganrog  to  St.  Peters- 
burg, for  the  purpose  of  visiting  his  mother's  relations,  who  resided  in  that 
citv.     Two  years  later  the  elder  Mr.   Yeames,  who  had  visited  Italy  when  a 


132  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

young  man,  and  possessed  great  love  of  the  Fine  Arts,  determined  to  renew 
his  acquaintance  with  what  he  had  before  seen,  and  proceeded  thither,  accom- 
panied by  his  whole  family.  They  took  passage  from  Taganrog  in  an  Italian 
merchant  ship,  which,  after  a  month's  voyage,  arrived  at  Malta ;  thence  they 
proceeded  to  Sicily,  and  after  seeing  whatever  was  thought  worthy  of 
examination  there,  they  journeyed  to  Naples,  Rome,  Leghorn,  Florence,  and 
Venice:  in  the  latter  grand  old  city  Mr.  Yeames,  sen.,  died  in  1843.  The 
widowed  mother  and  her  children  subsequently  returned  to  Russia.  After 
spending  the  winter  of  1843-4  in  Odessa,  Mrs.  Yeames,  who  must  have  been 
a  lady  of  great  energy,  took  her  children  to  Dresden,  for  the  purpose  of 
having  them  educated ;  and  there  her  son  William  first  received  some  slight 
instruction  in  drawing.  In  1848  the  family  came  to  London,  where  it  took 
up  its  residence.  The  following  year  the  subject  of  this  notice  began  to 
study  drawing,  with  the  view  of  making  Art  a  profession,  under  the  tuition  of 
Mr.  George  Scharf ;  at  the  same  time  he  attended  at  University  College  to 
study  anatomy,  &c.  Subsequently  he  had  some  instruction  from  Mr.  Sher- 
wood Westmacott,  a  sculptor.  This  appears  to  be  all  the  Art  teaching 
Mr.  Yeames  received  in  England. 

At  the  age  of  seventeen,  namely,  in  1852,  he  left  England  for  Florence, 
and  placed  himself  under  Professor  Pollastrini,  with  whom  he  remained  some 
time,  and  then  entered  the  studio  of  Signor  Raphael  Buonajuti.  In  the 
autumn  of  1854  he  paid  a  second  visit  to  Rome,  where  he  remained  about 
eighteen  months,  drawing  in  the  life  schools,  and  studying  the  slaiizi  of  the 
Vatican.  During  the  summer  months  he  employed  himself  in  sketching  from 
nature  among  the  Alban  Hills,  at  Subiaco,  and  at  Tivoli.  Three  months 
passed  in  England  in  the  year  1856,  and  Mr.  Yeames  was  again  in  Florence, 
working  under  Signor  Buonajuti.  At  this  time  he  painted  two  small  pictures, 
respectively  entitled  "Charity"  and  "The  Mandoline  Player,"  which  were 
exhibited  in  one  of  our  provincial  galleries,  after  the  artist's  return  to  England 
in  1858.     Since  that  year  he  has  permanently  resided  in  London. 

His  first  works  seen  in  the  metropolitan  galleries  were  a  life-size  portrait 
of  Mr.  B.  Whishaw,  and  a  picture  called  "  The  Staunch  Friend,"  both 
exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  1859:  the  latter  represents  a  jester  with  a 
monkey ;  it  is  cleverly  painted,  and  shows  character.  In  the  following  year 
he  was  seen  only  in  the  British  Institution,  where  his  solitary  contribution  was 
"  Ye  Trystinge  Houre;"  but  at  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1861   he  came 


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FEAMES.  133 

out  with  a  power  that  at  once  indicated  him  as  a  painter  of  mark ;  his  two 
pictures  were  "  The  Sonetto  "  and  "  The  Toilet." 

Passing  over,  but  only  from  want  of  space,  a  rather  large  picture  called 
"  Rescued,"  a  child  saved  from  drowning,  exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  1862, 
Mr.  Yeames  sent  to  the  same  galler}'  in  the  following  year  "  The  fleeting  of 
Sir  Thomas  More  and  his  Daughter"  after  his  sentence  to  death:  it  forms 
one  of  the  illustrations  engraved  here.  A  quotation  from  old  Roper's  "  Life 
of  Sir  T.  More"  explains  the  circumstances  of  the  interview,  which  takes 
place  at  the  entrance  of  the  Tower  gateway,  whither  he  has  been  conducted 
after  the  trial.  "  As  soone  as  she  sawe  him,  after  his  blessings  uppon  her 
knees  reverentlie  received,  shehastinge  towards  him,  without  consideracion  or 
care  of  her  selfe,  pressinge  in  amongst  the  midst  of  the  thronge  and  companie 
of  the  garde  that  with  halbards  and  bills  went  round  about  him,  hastily  ranne 
to  him,  and  theare  openly  in  sight  of  them  imbraced  him  and  took  him  about 
the  neck  and  kissed  him.  Who  well  likinge  her  most  naturall  and  deere 
daughterlie  affection  towards  him,  gave  her  his  fatherlie  blessinge  and  manie 
godlie  words  of  comfort  besides."  The  composition  throughout  shows  varied 
incident  carefully  studied  and  skilfully  portrayed ;  but  the  interest  of  the 
whole  depends  upon  the  central  group,  where  the  Chancellor's  daughter  has 
broken  through  the  crowd  of  sympathizing  bystanders,  waiting  the  arrival  of 
the  condemned  man  at  the  Tower,  and  rushes  forward  to  throw  herself  into 
her  father's  arms,  undismayed  by  the  armed  guards,  who,  however,  seem  to 
make  but  a  faint  show  of  resisting  her  natural  affections,  now  raised  to  the 
utmost  point  of  agony ;  for  the  interview  was  probably  the  last :  the  headsman, 
armed  with  the  fatal  axe,  preceding  More  into  the  Tower,  is  significant  of 
speedy  execution.  The  story  could  scarcely  be  more  clearly,  pathetically,  and 
strikingly  told,  and  with  entire  negation  of  anything  approaching  to  sensa- 
tionalism. 

The  only  picture  exhibited  by  Mr.  Yeames  at  the  Academy  in  1864,  "  La 
Reine  Malheureuse,"  was  engraved  on  steel  in  the  Art  Jounial  for  the  year 
1869,  under  the  title  of  "The  Peril  of  the  Queen — Henrietta  Maria."  In 
1865  he  sent  to  the  French  Gallery,  Pall  RLill,  "The  Stepping-Stones,"  of 
which  an  engraving  is  here  introduced.  The  subject  is  as  humorous  as  it  is 
original.  A  lady  of  mediaeval  times  is  crossing  a  narrow  stream  carefully 
and  adroitly,  on  some  large  blocks  of  stone,  which  serve  as  a  kind  of  bridge 
connecting  a  mansion  with  the  town  :  in  her  hand  she  carries  a  pet  lap-dog 


134  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

in  somewhat  awkward  fashion,  and  the  little  animal  turns  up  its  eyes  to  her 
in  a  most  ludicrous  way,  as  if  praying  to  be  released.  The  maiden's  train  is 
daintily  upheld  by  a  rather  ancient  serving-man,  who  performs  the  duty  with 
a  serio-comic  expression  both  of  face  and  figure.  The  scene  is  of  Flemish 
character,  and  the  two  personages  are  admirably  drawn ;  while  the  picture, 
viewed  simply  as  an  example  of  painting,  shows  many  excellent  qualities. 

Assuredly  no  work  exhibited  at  the  Royal  Academy  in  1866  attracted 
more  general  attention  than  Mr.  Yeames's  "  Queen  Elizabeth  receiving  the 
French  Ambassadors  after  the  News  of  the  Massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew." 
In  all  essential  points  it  was  a  marked  success ;  and  it  led  to  the  election  of 
the  artist  as  an  Associate  of  the  Royal  Academy,  though  he  had  only 
exhibited  nine  works  In  the  gallery  of  the  institution. 

Of  two  pictures  contributed  by  Mr.  Yeames  In  1867,  "The  Dawn  of  the 
Reformation"  and  "Bread  and  Water,"  the  former  Is  by  far  the  more 
important  subject,  which  was  described  by  an  extract  appended  to  the  title  : 
"After  that  Wycllffe  had  finished  the  translation  of  the  Bible,  he  called 
together  '  the  poor  priests,'  his  disciples,  and  giving  them  copies,  bade  them 
make  known  the  Gospel  throughout  the  land." 

If  history  has  not  assumed  a  leading  place  in  the  productions  of  Mr. 
Yeames  with  respect  to  quantity,  it  certainly  occupies  a  very  prominent 
position  in  regard  to  quality.  His  "Lady  Jane  Grey  in  the  Tower,"  where 
Feckenham,  an  emissary  of  Queen  Mary,  Is  endeavouring  to  prevail  upon  her 
to  abjure  Protestantism  only  three  days  prior  to  her  execution,  shows  striking 
delineation  of  character  and  considerable  depth  of  thought.  This,  and  a 
small  canvas,  "A  Chimney  Corner  in  Hever  Castle,"  were  Mr.  Yeames's 
contributions  to  the  Academy  In  1868.  In  the  following  year  he  also  sent 
two  works,  each  very  different  in  subject  from  the  other,  yet  each  expressing 
apprehension  :   "  The  Fugitive  Jacobite  "  and  "  Alarming  Footsteps." 

The  theme  and  the  quality  of  Mr.  Yeames's  paintings,  even  far  more  than 
their  number — for  he  has  never  been  a  prolific  exhibitor — render  a  detailed 
notice  of  each  quite  an  impossibility  within  the  limits  to  which  this  notice  is 
necessarily  restricted.  We  can,  therefore,  do  little  more  than  call  attention 
to  "Maundy  Thursday"  In  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1870,  and  a  large 
canvas  exhibited  in  1871  under  the  title  of  "Dr.  Harvey  and  the  Children 
of  Charles  I."  Harvey,  the  famous  discoverer  of  the  circulation  of  the  blood, 
was  tutor  to  the  young  princes,  who  accompanied  their  father  In  his  war  with 


A  L  MA  -  T A  D  E M A. 


'35 


the  forces  of  the  Parliament.  At  the  commencement  of  the  battle  of  Edgehill, 
Harvey  took  the  children  to  witness  the  engag-ement,  and  placing  them,  as 
he  thought,  out  of  danger,  quietly  sat  down  and  began  to  read.  "  It  was 
only  when  the  bullets  whistled  about  their  heads  that  he  became  aware  of . 
the  danger  to  which  his  young  charges  were  exposed."  The  subject  is  an 
excellent  counterpart  to  the  artist's  "  La  Reine  ATalheureuse." 

To  complete  the  list  of  the  pictures  exhibited  by  Mr.  Yeames  at  the 
Academy  it  is  necessary  to  mention  the  following: — "Visit  to  the  Haunted 
Chamber"  and  "  Love's  Young  Dream,"  in  1870;  "  The  Prisoner  and  his 
Guests,"  1871;  "The  Old  Parishioner"  and  "  A  Rest  by  the  River-side," 
in  1872  ;  "Pleading  the  Old  Cause,"  "The  Morning  Rehearsal,"  and  "The 
Path  of  Roses,"  1873;  "Flowers  for  Hall  and  Bower,"  in  1874;  "The 
Suitor,"  in  1875;  "The  Last  Bit  of  Scandal"  (since  engraved),  in  1876; 
"Waking"  and  "Amy  Robsart,"  in  1877.  In  1878  Mr.  Yeames  became  a 
Royal  Academician,  his  diploma  picture  being  "When  did  you  last  see  your 
father?" 

Among  what  may  be  termed  extraneous  works  executed  by  him  may  be 
pointed  out  a  design,  the  subject  "Architecture,"  for  a  portion  of  the  outer 
frieze  of  the  Albert  Hall ;  and,  for  the  South  Kensington  Museum,  a  lunette 
which  represents  "  Studying  from  the  Nude,"  and  life-size  figures  of  Holbein 
and  Torrigiano. 

Considering  how  much  of  Mr.  Yeames's  Art  education  was  received  in 
continental  schools,  one  is  surprised  to  see  so  little  of  foreign  influence 
in  his  pictures.  His  subjects  are  essentially  English,  and  his  method  of 
treating  them  is  generally  analogous  to  that  practised  by  our  own  school. 
He  is  an  earnest,  intelligent,  vigorous,  yet  painstaking  artist,  whose  works 
merit  the  favour  they  receive  from  our  best  collectors. 


The  great  modern  Dutch  artist,  Alma-Tadema,  was  born  on  the  8th  of 
January,  1836,  at  Dronryp,  a  small  village  in  Friesland,  lying  between  the 
towns  of  Harlingen,  on  the  coast  opposite  Texel  Island,  and  Leeuwarden, 
situated  a  few  miles  inland.  He  was  educated  in  the  Gymnasium  of  Leeu- 
warden, where  much  of  his  time  was  spent  in  the  study  of  Roman  and 
Egyptian  antiquities. 

In   1852,  when  at  the  age  of  sixteen,  he  went  to  Antwerp,  and  entered 


136  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

the  Academy  there  as  a  student ;  subsequently  he  placed  himself  with  the 
late  Baron  Henry  Leys,  whom  he  assisted  in  several  of  the  large  pictures 
with  which  the  Baron's  name  is  associated.  Leys'  archeeological  style, 
though  dealing  with  a  different  class  of  subject,  no  doubt  helped  to  confirm 
his  young  pupil  in  that  he  had  determined  to  follow :  the  medisevalism  of  the 
master  and  the  classicism  of  the  scholar  had  a  like  origin,  though  a  different 
result. 

The  first  note  we  have  of  Mr.  Alma-Tadema's  appearance  as  an  exhi- 
bitor refers  to  the  exhibition  at  Antwerp  in  1861,  to  which  he  sent  "The 
School  for  Vengeance — Education  of  the  Children  of  Clotilda  :  "  a  reduced 
copy  of  this  work  many  of  our  readers  will  doubtless  remember  to  have  seen 
in  the  French  Gallery,  Pall  Mall,  in  1869.  The  original  picture,  which 
belongs  to  the  King  of  the  Belgians,  was  at  the  International  Exhibition 
at  Munich  in  the  last-mentioned  year,  and  has  been  engraved.  A  picture, 
"Venantius  Fortunatus,"  a  subject  taken  from  the  early  history  of  the  Ger- 
manic nations,  about  the  seventh  century — was  exhibited  at  Amsterdam  in 
1862  ;  and  for  it  the  artist  received  a  gold  medal,  and  was  elected  a  member 
of  the  Academy  of  that  city.  Another  picture,  also  of  early  European 
history,  "  Fredegonda,"  was  exhibited  in  Antwerp  in  1864,  and  was  litho- 
graphed at  the  expense  of  the  Ghent  Society  of  Fine  Arts. 

In  1865  he  made  his  first  appearance  in  England  as  an  exhibitor:  in 
the  French  Gallery  hung  "Egyptian  Games"  and  "Sortie  de  I'Eglise." 
In  the  next  following  year  there  were  in  the  same  gallery  two  pictures, 
respectively  entitled  "The  Portico  of  a  Roman  Theatre"  and  "A  Roman 
Lady  returning  from  making  Purchases  :  "  striking  as  these  paintings 
are,  and  novel  as  were  the  subjects  at  that  time,  they  attracted  but  little 
attention  comparatively  from  contemporary  critics,  as  if  they  did  not  quite 
understand  a  style  of  Art  which  seemed  to  have  been  resuscitated  from 
the  dead  past  of  two  thousand  years  ago.  But  the  time  was  rapidly 
approaching  when  the  painter's  works  were  to  force  themselves  into  notice. 
"  TibuUus's  Visit  to  Delia"  has  the  merit  of  being  a  study  and  feast  for 
the  antiquar)',  so  careful  and  true  are  the  restorations.  The  pigments  are 
a  little  opaque,  as  if  the  artist  had  carried  in  his  mind  the  ancient  practice 
of  tempera.  Yet  does  the  painter  put  forth  the  full  power  of  his  palette, 
and  through  contrasts  and  harmonies  gain  marvellous  results.  In  the 
same  gallery  he  exhibited  the  year  following  three  pictures,  of  which  "  A 


^'^■'SoaAfe^  ...^     -!& 


THE   CONVALESCENT. 
From  a  Painting  bj'  Lawrence  Alma-Tademi,  R.A. 


A  L  MA  -  T  A  D  E  M  A.  137 

Roman  Dance  "  is  probably  the  most  characteristic  expression  of  the  artist's 
g-enius.  "  Tarquinius  Superbus,"  in  the  International  Fine  Art  Exhibition 
held  at  Leeds  in  1868,  was  also  exhibited  at  Munich  in  1869. 

Hitherto  Mr.  Alma-Tadema  had  made  no  appearance  in  our  Royal 
Academy,  although,  in  :868,  he  had  painted  a  picture  which  he  hoped 
might  find  admittance  there ;  it  was,  however,  bought  prior  to  the  time  of 
receiving  works  for  exhibition,  by  a  gentleman  who  declined  to  part  with  it 
f(^r  the  purpose  desired  by  the  artist;  and  as  no  stipulation  had  been 
entered  into  by  the  latter  when  he  sold  it,  he  was  compelled  to  submit  to 
the  disappointment.  The  picture  in  question  was  "  Phidias  at  work  in 
the  Parthenon." 

In  1869  Mr.  Alma-Tadema  was  for  the  first  time  represented  at  the 
Academy,  and  by  two  pictures,  "  Un  Amateur  Romain  "  and  "  Une  Danse 
Pyrrhique;"  the  former  showing  the  interior  of  a  dwelling  inhabited  by  a 
citizen  of  the  Empire,  under  the  Caesars  probably,  who  is  surrounded  in  the 
apartment  by  antique  sculptures,  bronzes,  &c. — objects  as  much  valued  by 
the  Art  lovers  of  those  far-off  days  as  they  are  by  the  modern  connoisseur. 
The  other  painting  was  more  attractive,  but  only  on  account  of  its  singular 
originality.  This  Pyrrhic  dance  is  performed  by  a  company  of  warriors  who, 
armed  with  shield,  lance,  helmet,  and  other  objects  of  offence  and  defence, 
perform  a  kind  of  tournament  in  the  presence  of  a  grave  assemblage  of 
spectators  clothed  in  strictly  classic  costume. 

The  following  year  this  painter — of  whom  it  has  been  said  that  he 
belongs  to  no  school,  but  is  himself  a  school — contributed  three  pictures 
to  the  exhibition  of  the  Royal  Academy.  One  of  them  was  simply  called 
"  Un  Interieur  Romain,"  a  title,  however,  that  does  not  adequately  describe 
the  artist's  intention  in  the  composition,  which  would  be  better  expressed 
by  that  of  "The  Convalescent:"  by  this  name  Mr.  Alma-Tadema  wished 
it  to  be  called  in  our  engraving.  In  the  foreground,  lying  on  a  couch,  is 
a  young  Roman  girl  recovering  from  illness ;  at  the  foot  of  the  couch  a 
female,  possibly  intended  for  her  mother,  reads  from  a  scroll  in  her  hand ; 
in  front  of  them  is  a  younger  female  on  her  knees,  fanning  with  her  breath 
the  dying  embers  of  a  fire  in  a  brazen  tripod,  whereon  is  a  vessel  of  some 
kind,  containing  nourishment  for  the  little  invalid.  In  the  immediate  back- 
ground is  what,  in  modern  phraseology,  would  be  called  the  kitchen,  where 
a  large  table  is  set  out  with  a  variet}'  of  edibles,  and  domestics  are  busy  in 

T 


ijS  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

culinary  preparations.  This  is  a  very  fascinating-  picture  after  its  kind,  full 
of  classic  adornments  enriching  the  canvas,  and  affording  in  the  draperies 
and  mural  painting  ample  scope  for  colour.  "  Un  Jongleur,"  another  work 
of  the  year  1870,  is  vastly  clever,  but  the  subject  is  not  inviting.  The  third 
and  largest  of  the  year's  contributions  was  another  "  Amateur  Romain," 
differing  in  some  important  points  from  the  picture  of  i86g. 

Up  to  this  period  (1870)  Mr.  Alma-Tadema  had  lived  in  Brussels;  but  at 
the  end  of  that  year,  or  early  in  1871,  he  came  over  to  England,  and  has 
since  made  it  his  residence.  Having  lost  his  first  wife,  a  French  lady,  not 
very  long  after  marriage,  he  took  for  his  second  a  countrywoman  of  our  own, 
a  lady  to  whose  accomplishments  as  a  painter  the  exhibitions  of  the  Royal 
Academy  have  testified.  "A  Roman  Emperor,  a.d.  41,"  is  the  title  of  a 
picture  sent  by  Mr.  Alma-Tadema  to  the  Royal  Academy  in  1871.  It 
represents  the  murdered  Caligula  yet  lying  on  the  marble  floor  of  his  palace, 
while  the  Roman  soldiers  are  dragging  forth  Claudius  from  behind  a  curtain 
to  be  his  successor. 

"The  Mummy — Roman  Period"  was  the  only  contribution  made  by 
Mr.  Alma-Tadema  to  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1872  :  it  has  less  real 
interest  than  almost  any  picture  we  remember  from  his  hand  ;  the  subject, 
so  far  as  it  declares  itself,  represents  the  interior  of  an  Egyptian  temple, 
in  which  some  figures  are  engaged  in  disposing  of  a  mummy. 

The  three  pieces  which  appeared  in  this  artist's  name  at  the  Academy  of 
1873  were  the  "Siesta,"  "Dinner,"  and  "Wine,"  representing  successive 
periods  in  the  ordinary  day-life  of  an  ancient  Greek.  It  has  been  pointed  out 
in  the  Art  Journal  that  these  subjects  may  very  possibly  have  been  suggested 
to  him  by  similar  works  in  fresco  on  the  walls  of  the  dining-room  of  Baron 
Leys'  museum  in  Antwerp.  "The  Death  of  the  First-born,"  exhibited  in  the 
same  year,  may  be  considered,  looking  at  the  combination  of  high  qualities 
by  which  it  is  characterized,  as  the  artist's  greatest  work. 

There  are  still  two  or  three  exhibited  works  not  yet  spoken  of,  and  for 
these  we  must  go  back  to  the  French  Gallery,  where,  in  1870,  appeared 
"Ancient  Roman  Wine  Merchants,"  whose  heads  look  out  of  the  canvas 
with  as  much  of  life  as  if  they  were  the  veritable  heads  of  the  vintners  who 
supplied  Horace  and  his  companions  with  the  famous  Falernian.  "  In  the 
Temple,"  exhibited  in  187 1,  shows  a  portion  of  an  edifice  where  several 
priestesses   are  assembled,  one  of  whom   stands  on  a   tripod  with  incense 


S  a 

5  I 

H  ?" 

I/)  S 

W  S 

Ph  M 

s  -^ 

ft. 


fe, 


A  L  M  A  -  T  A  n  E  M  A.  139 

burning- :  the  canvas  shows  the  most  scrupulous  attention  to  detail  in  ever}' 
part.  In  the  Winter  Exhibition  of  the  same  year  was  "  Pottery  Painting-," 
an  antique  studio,  having  for  its  principal  occupant  a  woman  engaged  in 
decorating  a  vase :  this  is  a  very  remarkable  picture.  Also  may  be 
mentioned  "An  Improvisatore,"  exhibited  in  1873;  it  is  a  small  work, 
showing  the  performer  before  an  enthusiastic  audience. 

To  complete  the  list  of  Mr.  Alma-Tadema's  pictures  we  should  mention 
"The  Picture  Gallery"  and  "Joseph,  Overseer  of  Pharaoh's  Granaries,"  at 
the  Royal  Academy  in  1874  ;  "  The  Sculpture  Gallery"  and  "  W' ater  Pets," 
in  1875  ;  "  Cleopatra"  and  two  other  pictures,  in  1876,  when  he  was  elected 
an  Associate  of  the  Royal  Academy;  "The  Seasons,"  in  1877;  and 
"A  Sculptor's  Model,"  in  1878.  No  less  than  ten  of  his  works  appeared 
at  Paris  in  1878.  In  the  following  year  he  reached  the  highest  honour  of  the 
Academy. 

To  the  International  Exhibition  of  1871  Mr.  Alma-Tadema  contributed 
"  La  Causerie,"  two  Roman  ladies  conversing  in  an  apartment  rich  with  the 
furniture,  &c.,  of  refined  life;  and  to  that  of  1872,  an  Egyptian  scene.  His 
fine  picture,  "  A  Vintage  Festival  in  Ancient  Rome,"  exhibited  in  Mr.  Gam- 
bart's  rooms.  King  Street,  St.  James's,  in  1871,  has  been  beautifully  engraved 
by  Mr.  Blanchard.  The  Grosvenor  Gallery,  too,  has  of  late  quite  teemed  with 
his  canvases. 

The  first  of  the  illustrations  here  introduced  is  from  a  picture,  "  Greek 
Festive  Scene,"  never  exhibited  in  England.  Here  are  musicians  and 
dancers  and  others,  some  of  whom  appear  to  have  been  sacrificing  to  Bacchus. 
In  the  background  is  a  sculptured  altar  or  table,  bearing  rich  vases,  and  in 
the  front  is  a  tripod  with  incense  burning. 

The  works  of  this  most  original  artist  have  a  special  charm  for  all  who  are 
interested  in  classic  history ;  and  to  those  who  know  nothing  of  it  or  care 
but  little  about  it  they  make  a  strong  appeal  by  the  novelty  of  their  subjects. 
They  are,  moreover,  instructive  studies,  wherein  we  read  how  the  men  and 
women  of  Egypt,  Greece,  and  Rome  lived  and  moved,  and  had  their  being. 
Learned  in  the  manners  and  customs  of  those  bygone  nations,  he  revivifies 
them  with  an  intensity  of  realism  which  is  almost  marvellous :  deep  thought 
and  rare  learning  find  expression  on  his  canvases.  It  was  at  one  time  to 
be  feared  that  in  the  desire  after  technical  finish  and  accuracy  in  what  may 
be  considered  only  the  subordinate  parts  of  an  historical  composition,  some 


HO  BRITISH     PAINTERS. 

sacrifice  would  be  made  of  the  real  principals — the  figures :  time,  however, 
has  proved  such  apprehensions  to  be  groundless  ;  the  stoyy  of  his  picture  has 
now  become  his  first  thought,  and  how  this  may  be  most  effectively  ren- 
dered ;  all  else  is  made  of  secondary  importance,  yet  does  it  receive  the 
utmost  attention.  The  technical  knowledge  and  consummate  skill  of  the 
painter  are  subservient  to  the  subject  of  his  compositions — manifestly  the 
resuscitation  of  those  from  whom  descended  the  arts  of  the  world. 

Mr.  Alma-Tadema  has  received  many  honours,  worthily  earned.  The 
following  list  shows  them  in  chronological  order: — 1864,  the  gold  medal  at 
the  Paris  Salon ;  1 866,  Knighthood  of  the  Order  of  Leopold  of  Belgium  ; 
1867,  second-class  medal  at  the  Paris  International  Exhibition;  1868, 
Knighthood  of  the  Lion  of  the  Netherlands;  1869,  Knighthood,  first 
class,  of  the  Order  of  St.  Michael  of  Bavaria ;  i  870,  Member  of  the  Royal 
Academy  of  Munich;  1873,  Knighthood  of  the  Order  of  the  Legion  of 
Honour,  France;  1874,  Member  of  the  Royal  Academy  of  Berlin ;  1879, 
Member  of  the  Royal  Academy  of  London. 


George  Henry  Boughton  was  born  near  Norwich  in  1834,  and  when 
about  three  years  of  age  was  taken  to  America  by  his  parents,  who  settled  in 
Albany,  the  capital  of  the  State  of  New  York.  Intended  for  commercial 
pursuits,  he  received  an  education  suitable  to  the  object ;  but  ledgers,  and 
balance-sheets,  and  "all  other  and  sundry"  matters  appertaining  to  the 
counting-house  were,  to  the  despair  of  all  interested  in  his  future  career  as  a 
merchant,  of  far  less  value  in  his  estimation  than  sheets  of  paper  whereon  he 
could  jot  down,  with  pencil  or  pen  and  ink,  his  ideas  of  human  faces  and 
human  figures.  Intent  on  acquiring  some  knowledge  of  drawing,  he  procured 
a  few  ordinary  lesson-books  with  examples ;  but  after  exhausting  the  contents 
of  these  he  came  to  a  pause,  and  felt  that  there  was  no  alternative  for  him 
but  the  counting-house.  One  day,  however,  preparing  for  a  fishing  expedi- 
tion, he  entered  a  "  variety  store  "  to  buy  hooks,  where  he  caught  sight 
of  some  tubes  of  colour,  "  the  first  instalment  of  Winsor  and  Newton's 
brilliant  temptations  "  that,  so  far  as  he  knew,  the  town  of  Albany  had  ever 
seen.  The  money  intended  for  the  purchase  of  fish-hooks  was  at  once  invested 
in  five  or  six  of  these  tubes  ;  and,  leaving  the  fish  for  some  other  angler,  he 
went  home  to  paint  a  landscape  on  a  small  piece  of  canvas  glued  on  a  board. 


BOUGHTON.  141 

The  exhibition  of  this  maiden  eftbrt  to  his  family  cast  a  gloom  over  the  whole 
circle  :  all  saw  in  it  the  blight  of  future  mercantile  prosperity,  while  it  gave 
the  utmost  delight  to  the  embryo  painter.  Mr.  Boughton  candidly  admits 
that  his  second  performance  had  less  of  "  originality  in  it,  though  he  worked 
it  from  a  more  luxuriant  palette,  and  with  a  larger  stock  of  materials :  "  this 
was  a  copy,  made  from  the  engraving  in  the  Art  younial,  of  Callcott's 
"Crossing  the  Brook:  "  it  so  far  "  took"  that  he  was  allowed  to  proceed 
with  his  labours  as  he  thought  proper.  Other  paintings  from  engravings 
followed,  with  copies  of  pictures  lent  by  friends,  and  then  he  attempted 
an  original  subject,  which  he  called  "  The  Wayfarer."  It  represented  an 
old  man  seated  by  the  roadside.  This  he  sent  to  the  New  York  Art  Union  ; 
the  committee  purchased  it,  sent  the  proceeds  at  once,  and  wrote  him  a  most 
encouraging  letter. 

Stimulated  by  this  early  success,  Mr.  Boughton  did  not  hesitate  to  engage 
a  studio  in  Albany,  and  start  in  the  world  as  a  painter  by  profession,  and  he 
soon  obtained  considerable  notice  in  the  States.  In  1853  he  came  over  to 
England  for  the  purpose  of  studying  British  Art  and  British  scenery,  remained 
a  few  months  in  London,  and  then  made  a  sketching  tour  to  the  English 
lakes,  Scotland,  and  Ireland.  With  a  portfolio  well  filled  he  returned  to 
Albany,  and  for  a  year  or  two  painted  pictures  from  these  sketches,  varying 
them  with  others  of  American  scenery.  In  1858  he  sent  for  exhibition  at  the 
New  York  Academy  of  Design  a  work  entitled  "Winter  Twilight,"  painted 
out  of  doors  in  the  depth  of  winter.  It  attracted  so  much  attention  that  he 
was  induced  to  remove  his  easel  from  Albany  to  New  York,  where  he  painted 
more  "  winters,"  and  some  few  figure  subjects,  all  of  which  proved  acceptable 
to  the  Art  patrons  of  the  country.  Two  years  afterwards  he  went  to  France 
to  study  the  works  in  the  galleries  of  Paris.  While  in  that  countr)'  he  received 
good  help  and  advice  from  E.  Frere. 

Returning  homewards  in  1862,  Mr.  Boughton  came  to  London  on  his 
route,  and  was  induced  by  some  friends  to  remain  there  a  few  months.  Part 
of  the  time  he  employed  in  painting  a  picture — a  small  canvas,  which  he  sent 
to  the  exhibition  at  the  British  Institution  in  the  following  year.  It  was  called 
"  Passing  into  the  Shade,"  and  was  favourably  noticed  in  the  leading  Art 
periodicals.  Since  1863  he  has  annually  exhibited  at  the  Royal  Academy, 
and  occasionally  at  other  galleries.  The  following  may  be  pointed  out  as  his 
principal  pictures : — 


142  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

"Through  the  Fields"  and  "Hop-pickers  Returning — Twilight,"  two 
most  carefully  painted  works^were  in  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1863.  These 
were  followed  by  "  Industry"  and  "  The  Interminable  Story,"  in  1864;  "A 
Breton  Haymaker"  and  "Wandering  Thoughts,"  in  1865;  "Wayside 
Devotion,  Brittany,"  and  "The  Swing,  Brittany,"  in  1866.  All  these 
pictures,  especially  the  Breton  subjects,  show  more  or  less  the  influence  of 
the  French  school,  being  low  in  colour,  and  without  much  attention  to 
elaborate  detail ;  yet  the  character  of  the  figures  is  well  maintained. 

The  only  picture  contributed  by  Mr.  Boughton  in  1867  brought  him  very 
prominently  into  notice.  It  had  more  of  historic  property  than  anything  we 
had  as  yet  seen  from  his  hand,  while  the  subject  itself  was  of  great  interest 
as  an  illustration  of  life  among  the  primitive  settlers  in  America.  It  bore 
for  its  title  "  Early  Puritans  of  New  England  going  to  Worship  armed,  to 
protect  themselves  from  Indians  and  Wild  Beasts,"  and  was  suggested  by  a 
passage  in  Bartlett's  "Pilgrim  Fathers,"  which  runs  thus: — "The  few 
villages  were  almost  isolated,  being  connected  only  by  long  miles  of  blind 

pathway  through  the  woods The  cavalcade  proceeding  to  church,  the 

marriage  procession  (if  marriage  procession  could  be  thought  of  in  those 
frightful  days)  was  often  interrupted  by  the  death-shot  of  some  invisible 
enemy."  The  party  of  men  are  proceeding  through  the  deep  snow,  each  with 
a  Bible  in  his  girdle,  and  bearing  a  musket  on  his  shoulder.  The  picture  is 
painted  with  a  soberness  and  simplicity  quite  in  keeping  with  the  theme. 

In  1868  also  Mr.  Boughton  exhibited  but  one  picture,  "A  Breton 
Pastoral,"  an  unpretentious  work,  but  very  attractive  by  its  truthfulness.  In 
the  following  year  appeared  his  "March  of  Miles  Standish."  "A  Wayside 
Cross,  Brittany,"  was  its  companion  in  the  gallery.  A  composition  called 
"Indifference"  was  in  Mr.  Wallis's  winter  exhibition  of  1869.  It  is  a 
subject  of  satirical  humour,  and  was  introduced  with  four  lines  from  a  poem 
by  T.  B.  Aldrich.  "  The  Rustic  Toilet,"  a  very  pleasant  picture,  was 
exhibited  at  the  same  time  with  "  Indifference." 

His  "Age  of  Gallantry"  caused  much  amusement  to  the  visitors  to  the 
Academy  in  1870,  wherein  he  indulged  his  quiet  humour  by  showing  a 
gentleman  of  rather  mature  age  wading  knee-deep  into  a  stream  to  gather 
water-lilies  for  some  young  girls  who  stand  on  the  banks,  tittering  most 
heartlessly  at  his  endeavours  to  procure  the  flowers  for  them.  Not  alone, 
however,  as  a  humorous  composition  is  the  picture  to  be  commended,  but 


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ICHABOD   CRANE. 
From  a  Painting  by  George  Henry  Boughton,  A.R.A. 


nOUGHTON.  143 

also  for  the  winning  manner  in  which  it  is  placed  on  the  canvas :  a  soft 
silvery  light,  significant  of  perfect  quietude,  is  thrown  over  landscape  and 
figures. 

"The  Last  of  the  May/loivcr,'"  which  forms  one  of  our  engravings,  was 
exhibited  at  the  French  Gallery  in  1868.  The  subject  is  a  fitting  com- 
panion to  the  "  March  of  Miles  Standish,"  both  being  suggested  by  Long- 
fellow's poem.  Here  we  see  John  Alden,  the  "  friend  and  household 
companion"  of  Standish,  the  "learned  letter-writer,"  and  subsequently 
the  successful  rival  of  the  stalwart  warrior  in  the  affections  of  the  Puritan 
maiden,  Priscilla,  standing  with  the  girl  on  the  seashore,  and 

"  Casting  a  farewell  glance  on  the  glimmering  sail  of  the  Mayflower, 
Distant,  but  still  in  sight,  and  sinking  beneath  the  horizon," 

as  the  gallant  little  vessel  returns  home  to  England  after  leaving  her  cargo  of 
Pilgrim  Fathers  to  their  fortunes  in  the  New  World. 

Our  second  engraving,  "  Ichabod  Crane,"  is  from  a  picture  never,  we 
believe,  exhibited.  Washington  Irving' s  "  Sketch  Book  "  supplied  the  text  for 
it  in  "The  Legend  of  Sleepy  Hollow,"  where  the  schoolmaster  in  the  little 
Dutch  village  of  Greensburg,  or  Tarry  Town,  is  described  as  gathering  round 
him,  between  the  services  on  Sunday,  a  host  of  young  girls  while  "  he  recited 
for  their  amusement  all  the  epitaphs  on  the  tombstones."  The  personnel  of 
Ichabod,  as  described  by  Irving,  is  well  maintained,  and  the  easy  unaffected 
attitudes  of  the  group  are  especially  noticeable. 

We  must  also  notice  "  A  Chapter  from  '  Pamela,'  "  in  the  Royal  Academy 
exhibition  of  187 1;  "The  Heir,"  in  1873;  "The  Waning  of  the  Honey- 
moon ;  "  and  "  Green  Leaves  among  the  Sere."  These  and  other  works  of 
the  last  few  years  have  greatly  added  to  Mr.  Bough  ton's  reputation  in 
England ;  in  America  he  has  always  been  popular.  In  the  Fine  Art  Depart- 
ment of  the  Philadelphia  Exhibition  of  1876  he  had  "Normandy  Girl  in  a 
Shower,"  "By  the  Sea,"  "Looking  out  to  Sea,"  the  "Pilgrim's  Sunday 
Morning,"  and  "Going  to  seek  his  Fortune." 

As  a  whole,  his  pictures  are  not  of  a  character  to  attract  the  visitor  to  a 
public  gallery  by  striking  effects  of  colour,  or  by  the  setting  forth  of  subjects 
that  would  at  once  arrest  attention ;  they  are  works  to  be  looked  into  and 
studied  for  their  negative  rather  than  their  positive  qualities  of  excellence — 
for  their  simplicity  of  design,  tenderness  of  emotion,  felicitous  expression, 


144  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

and  charm  of  subdued,  yet  not  weak,  colouring.     He  has  steadily  advanced 
to  a  high  position  among  over  genre  painters. 


Philip  Richard  Morris  was  born  at  Devonport,  on  December  ist,  1836, 
where  his  father,  also  a  native  of  that  town,  practised  as  an  engineer  and  iron- 
founder  :  subsequently  he  removed  to  Berwick-upon-Tweed,  where  his  son 
Philip  was  educated.  Soon  afterwards  the  family  came  up  to  London,  and 
the  future  artist  was  placed  in  an  office  for  a  term  of  seven  years  ;  but  the 
occupation  was  obnoxious  to  one  whose  tastes,  from  an  early  period  of  life, 
had  disposed  him  towards  Art. 

Here  we  may  perhaps  be  permitted  to  quote  an  extract  from  a  letter  we 
received  sometime  ago  from  the  painter.  "  It  was,"  he  writes,  "  reading  the 
series  of  biographical  sketches  of  British  Artists  in  the  Art  Journal  that  gave 
a  firmness  to  my  determination  to  become  an  artist ;  and  especially  the  account 
given  of  the  President  of  the  Royal  Scottish  Academy,  Sir  George  Harvey, 
whose  efforts  to  paint  during  the  few  hours  snatched  from  an  uncongenial 
employment  inspirited  me  to  think  that  I,  too,  might  become  a  painter.  This 
and  the  '  Life  of  Hogarth  '  incited  me  to  rise  at  five  o'clock  in  the  morning  in 
the  summer,  and  to  draw  till  seven,  when  my  day-work  commenced,  and 
continued  till  eight  in  the  evening,  after  which  I  was  again  at  my  pencil. 
This  went  on  for  five  weary  years,  but  with  many  desperate  thoughts  of 
absconding  from  home ;  once,  indeed,  I  had  my  carpet  bag  packed  up,  and, 
with  a  young  friend  of  similar  aspirations,  was  about  to  start  for  Wales — then 
an  unknown  land  to  me — with  the  idea  of  sketching  portraits  for  our  livelihood." 
But  wiser  heads  than  his  own  then  prevented  the  realisation  of  this  adven- 
turous step :  the  time  was  not  yet  ripe  for  any  such  undertaking. 

During  a  brief  sojourn  on  the  southern  coast  he  chanced  to  meet  with 
Mr.  Holman  Hunt  at  work  on  his  picture,  "  Strayed  Sheep,"  who  very  kindly 
sought  an  interview  with  Mr.  Morris's  father,  and  persuaded  him  to  permit 
his  son  to  pursue  a  course  of  artistic  education.  But  the  youth's  employer 
was  inexorable  in  refusing  to  give  consent  to  his  leaving  him,  so  there  was 
no  alternative  but  to  persevere  in  working  out  the  term  of  the  indentures. 
This,  however,  became,  at  length,  so  insupportable  that  he  broke  away  one 
morning  from  his  occupation,  and  went  to  the  British  Museum  to  draw,  yet 
with   the  greatest  dread  of  being  discovered  by  his  master  :  the  secret  of 


MORRIS.  145 

repeated  absence  at  last  was  found  out,  and  the  latter,  after  sundr}'  threats  of 
summoning  his  apprentice  before  the  magistrate,  left  him  to  follow  his  own 
course,  with  two  years  of  the  term  of  servitude  unfulfilled. 

So  at  the  British  Museum  the  youth  resumed  his  studies  without  molesta- 
tion, drawing  chiefly  from  the  Elgin  Marbles.  At  the  age  of  nineteen  he 
entered  the  schools  of  the  Royal  Academy,  where,  in  1855,  he  won  the  silver 
medal  for  the  best  drawing  from  the  life.  Double  honours  awaited  him  the 
next  year,  for  he  obtained  the  silver  medal  for  the  best  painting  from  the  nude 
figure,  and  a  second  similar  prize  for  the  best  painting  from  the  draped  figure. 
A  still  higher  award  was  made  in  his  favour  in  1858,  when  he  won  the  gold 
medal  for  the  best  historical  picture,  the  subject  being  "  The  Good  Sama- 
ritan." Subsequently  he  competed  successfully  for  the  Travelling  Student- 
ship, on  obtaining  which  he  went  into  France  and  Italy  for  study.  So  far, 
therefore,  as  encouragement  was  to  be  derived  from  Academical  honours,  Mr. 
Morris  commenced  his  career  under  the  most  favourable  circumstances  :  the 
few  pictures  he  has  produced  show  that'  he  has  not  disappointed  the  expecta- 
tions such  youthful  success  as  his  naturally  raised. 

His  first  publicly  exhibited  picture  appeared  in  the  Academy  in  1858, 
while  he  was  yet  a  student  in  the  schools  of  that  institution :  it  bore  the  title, 
"Peaceful  Days,"  and  represented  an  old  soldier  seated,  with  a  child  on  his 
knee.  The  composition  is  agreeably  arranged,  and  the  man's  face,  to  which 
marked  attention  has  evidently  been  given,  Is  worked  up  to  the  delicacy  of  a 
miniature.  It  was  no  small  compliment  paid  to  the  young  artist's  first 
exhibited  picture  that  it  was  purchased  by  the  late  T.  Creswick,  R.  A.  By  the 
death  of  the  Royal  Academician,  A.  L.  Egg,  Mr.  Morris  lost  a  good  friend 
and  able  adviser  in  his  practice.  Mr.  Egg  bought  his  next  picture,  "  Voices 
from  the  Sea,"  exhibited  In  the  same  gallery  In  i860.  It  is  a  careful 
piece  of  painting,  but  the  fisherman's  children  and  the  fishing-boats  scarcely 
justify  the  title  given  to  the  work.  In  that  year  Mr.  Morris  sent  to  the 
British  Institution  "The  Widow's  Harvest:"  It  represents  a  Highland 
widow  gathering  in  a  scanty  crop  of  oats,  while  a  sailor-boy,  recently  returned 
from  sea,  is  at  play  with  his  young  brother.  "  The  Captive's  Return,"  in  the 
Academy  exhibition  of  1861,  Is  an  attractive  work;  It  bears  evidence  of 
power  both  in  conception  and  colour.  An  idea  of  the  subject  may  be  formed 
from  the  quotation  which  accompanied  its  title  in  the  catalogue  : — "And  the 
young  Alister  Ray,  weak  from  his  wound,  still  slept  on  the  rude  litter  his 

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Hf>  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

escort  had  made  for  him  ;  his  parents,  gazing  wistfully  on  his  face,  could 
mark  the  lines  of  suffering  traced  there  since  the  day  the  Southerns  invaded 
the  glen."  The  picture  was  in  the  possession  of  the  late  Mr.  George  P. 
Bidder,  the  eminent  engineer. 

From  that  year  till  1864  we  hear  nothing  of  the  artist,  who  probably  was 
passing  the  intervening  period  In  pursuing  his  studies  on  the  continent.  But 
in  the  British  Institution  of  the  last-mentioned  year  he  exhibited  the  first  of 
those  pictures  which  partake  in  some  degree  of  the  character  of  Sacred  Art. 
"  Where  they  Crucified  Him" — the  title  of  the  work — is  the  property  of  Mr. 
Robert  Rawlinson,  C.B.  ;  it  was  engraved  in  the  Art  Journal  {or  1868.  The 
comments  then  made  upon  it  need  not  be  repeated  here :  suffice  it  to  say  that 
the  picture  is  full  of  rich  poetic  suggestion.  Mr.  Morris  exhibited  a  second 
work  with  it,  "  Cradled  in  his  Calling,"  of  which  an  engraving  is  given. 
The  composition  shows  a  novel  fancy :  a  weather-beaten  fisherman,  having 
been  met  by  his  wife  and  child  as  he  returns  on  shore,  has  placed  the  sturdy 
youngster  in  his  fishing-net,  and  the  little  one  is  borne  home  in  the  extemporised 
cradle  by  the  father  and  a  fisher-boy,  accompanied  by  the  man's  faithful  dog. 
This  is  a  most  pleasant  picture,  both  in  sentiment  and  in  treatment.  In  the  same 
gallery  appeared,  in  1865,  "  The  Battle  Scar."  In  that  year  he  contributed 
to  the  Royal  Academy  "  Jesu  Salvator,"  a  title  given  to  an  incident  supplied 
by  the  records  of  the  dispersion  of  the  Spanish  Armada.  "  In  the  year  1588, 
the  Spanish  ship  Florida,  forming  part  of  the  Invincible  Armada,  was  lost  on 
the  Island  of  Tobermory,  or  Well  of  Mary,  near  a  religious  house  dedicated 

to  the  Virgin The  Synod  of  Argyle  allowed  the  nuns  to  remain  in 

those  islands  long  after  the  Reformation  in  Scotland."  "  The  Knightly 
Mirror,"  in  the  Winter  Exhibition  at  the  French  Gallery  in  1867,  has  been 
engraved  by  H.  Simmons.  "The  Riven  Shield,"  at  the  Academy  in  1866, 
deserved  a  much  better  place  than  that  given  to  it  by  the  hangers,  for  it  is  a 
work  of  more  than  ordinary  merit. 

"  Drift  Wreck  from  the  Armada,"  exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  1867,  is  a 
work  original  in  conception  and  most  spiritedly  carried  out.  Another  of  his 
pictures  exhibited  the  same  year  in  the  Academy  was  called  "Setting  in 
Glory;"  but  we  are  drawing  closely  to  the  end  of  our  allotted  space,  and 
cannot  enter  upon  any  description  of  this,  or  of  the  artist's  work  exhibited  in 
1868,  "  Christening-day  of  the  Infant  Heir." 

In    1869  he  sent  to  the  Academy  the  "Ambuscade,"  of  which  it  must 


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suffice  to  remark  that  the  composition  of  landscape  and  figures  evinces 
knowledge  and  power  of  independent  treatment.  The  drawing  is  firm,  the 
disposition  of  a  somewhat  complex  subject  skilful,  the  colour  deep  and 
significant. 

Lady  Burdett-Coutts  possesses  a  picture  by  Mr.  Morris,  "  The  Shadow  of 
the  Cross,"  which,  we  believe,  was  never  exhibited.  Neither  was  "  Prison 
Fare,"  one  of  our  illustrations,  the  property  of  Mr.  Fox,  of  Alderley. 
There  is  nothing  specially  novel  in  the  composition ;  but  so  far  as  we  read  it, 
the  incident  is  touching:  a  captive  handing  to  a  starving  woman  and  child 
through  the  barred  window  a  piece  of  his  prison-bread.  The  narrative  is 
forcibly  and  skilfully  worked  out  on  the  canvas. 

"The  Golden  Hour  that  fadeth  into  Night"  is  one  of  the  noticeable 
pictures  this  artist  has  exhibited;  it  was  hung  at  the  New  British  Institution, 
opened  towards  the  close  of  1871,  and  though  the  subject  is  simple  enough — 
two  girls  driving  before  them  a  couple  of  white  calves — there  is  a  sentiment 
in  the  work  which  carries  it  far  beyond  a  mere  rustic  incident. 

"A  Highland  Pastoral,"  the  property  of  Captain  Hill,  of  Brighton, 
appeared  at  the  Royal  Academy  in  1872.  "The  Sailor's  Wedding,"  exhi- 
bited in  1876,  was  one  of  the  artist's  pictures  at  Paris  in  1878.  In  that  year 
Mr.  Morris  was  elected  an  Associate  of  the  Royal  Academy,  contributing 
"  The  First  Communion  "  and  "  The  Tomb." 

Mr.  Morris  has  only  to  continue  steadily  in  the  same  track  along  which  he 
has  hitherto  travelled  to  gain  for  himself  a  high  reputation  :  he  possesses  a 
pure  and  imaginative  feeling,  takes  great  pains  with  whatever  he  puts  on 
canvas,  and  shows  many  other  estimable  qualities  that  must  eventually  win 
renown. 


Art,  though  of  a  different  kind  from  that  practised  by  Mr.  Poynter,  seems 
to  have  been  Inherited  from  his  ancestors ;  for  he  Is  the  son  of  Mr.  Ambrose 
Poynter,  architect,  and  the  great-grandson  of  Thomas  Banks,  R.A.,  one  of 
our  most  eminent  sculptors  of  the  last  century,  whose  name  appears  on  the 
list  of  the  earliest  members  of  the  Royal  Academy.  He  was  born  in  Paris  in 
1836,  but  was  brought  over  to  England  when  an  Infant,  and  was  here  trained 
and  educated.  At  the  latter  end  of  1853  he  went  into  Italy,  where  he  passed 
the  winter,  and  there  formed  the  acquaintance  of  Mr.  (now  Sir)  F.  Leighton, 


148  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

R.A.,  who  took  the  kindest  interest  in  his  studies,  admitting  him  at  all 
times  into  his  studio.  Mr.  Leighton  was  then  engaged  upon  his  great  work, 
"The  Procession  of  Cimabue's  Madonna  through  the  Streets  of  Florence:  " 
his  example  and  influence  had,  no  doubt,  much  weight  in  determining  the 
resolution  of  Mr.  Poynter  to  adopt  Art  as  a  profession.  Accordingly,  on  his 
return  to  London  he  commenced  his  studies  in  the  academy  of  Mr.  Leigh, 
Newman  Street,  and  was  afterwards  for  a  year  with  Mr.  W.  C.  T.  Dobson, 
now  R.A.  In  1855  he  obtained  admission  as  a  probationer  into  the  schools 
of  the  Royal  Academy,  where  he  continued  till  the  early  part  of  the  following 
year;  but  having  visited  Paris  in  the  summer  of  1855,  when  the  International 
Exhibition  was  open,  the  pictures  of  the  French  school  he  saw  there 
induced  him  to  form  so  high  an  estimate  of  its  excellence,  that  he  obtained 
permission  from  his  father  to  pursue  his  studies  in  Paris.  In  furtherance  of 
this  object  he  entered,  in  1856,  the  atelier  of  M.  Gleyre,  of  whom  Delaroche 
formed  so  high  an  opinion  as  a  master,  that  when  the  latter  relinquished 
tuition  he  recommended  his  pupils  to  go  to  Gleyre.  Later  in  the  same  year 
Mr.  Poynter  was  admitted  a  student  in  the  Ecole  des  Beaux  Arts,  and  the  four 
following  years  were  spent  by  him  in  England  and  France  alternately.  The 
first  of  his  pictures  exhibited  in  London,  "  Two  Italian  Pifferari,"  was  painted 
in  Paris  in  1858,  and  was  hung  in  the  gallery  of  the  British  Institution  in 
1859.  In  i860  he  finally  settled  down  in  London.  About  that  time  the  old 
abbey  church  at  Waltham  was  being  restored  under  the  direction  of  Mr. 
William  Purges,  and  Mr.  Poynter  was  engaged  to  decorate  the  ceiling,  for 
which  he  painted,  on  canvas,  a  large  number  of  pictures — nearly  thirty,  we 
believe — the  designs  containing  life-size  figures :  these  canvases  were  fixed 
to  the  ceiling.  He  was  also  employed  about  the  same  time  in  making 
drawings  for  stained  glass,  and  among  these  were  four  large  historical 
subjects  for  windows  in  the  Maison  Dieu  Hall  at  Dover,  and  two  for  windows 
in  the  church  of  St.  Bartholomew's  Hospital. 

Henceforth  we  follow  the  footsteps  of  Mr.  Poynter  as  he  passes  through 
the  galleries  of  the  Royal  Academy,  where  he  appeared  for  the  first  time  in 

1861,  in  a  small  picture,  called   "Alia  Veneziana,"  which  was  succeeded,  in 

1862,  by  two  works,  "Heaven's  Messenger"  and  "The  Bunch  of  Blue 
Ribbons."  His  two  pictures  in  the  Academy  in  1864  were  "  The  Siren,"  a 
nude  figure  of  great  beauty,  holding  a  harp  in  her  hand,  and  "  On  Guard,  in 
the  Time  of  the    Pharaohs,"    an   Egyptian   soldier  standing'   sentinel    on    a 


ip 


S  - 

H 


1, 

s 


P  O  y  X  T  E  R.  140 

watchtower  :  this  last  work  was  the  forerunner  of  several  pictures  carrying 
back  the  spectator  to  a  country  and  a  chronology  almost  strange  to  modern 
Art^at  least,  as  Mr.  Poynter  showed  them — both  in  time  and  place.  Before, 
however,  resorting  again  to  the  land  of  the  Pharaohs,  he  exhibited,  in  1865,  a 
picture  recalling  to  mind  the  destruction  of  Pompeii  :  it  was  called  "  Faithful 
unto  Death."  The  subject  is  elucidated  by  the  artist  himself,  who  appended 
to  the  title  of  the  picture  the  following  explanation  : — "  In  carrying  on  the 
excavations  near  the  Herculanean  Gate  of  Pompeii,  the  skeleton  of  a  soldier  in 
full  armour  was  discovered.  Forgotten  in  the  terror  and  confusion  that  reigned 
during  the  destruction  of  the  city,  the  sentinel  had  received  no  order  to  quit 
his  post,  and  while  all  sought  their  safety  in  flight,  he  remained  faithful  to  his 
duty,  notwithstanding  the  certain  doom  which  awaited  him."  There  is 
unflinching  firmness  manifest  in  the  expression  of  the  man's  face,  and  in  the 
attitude  of  every  limb ;  but  the  picture  is  not  agreeable  to  contemplate,  as 
much  from  the  necessary  prevalence  of  strong  red  colour  as  from  its  painful 
association  with  what  may  be  called  a  living  death. 

Passing  over  Mr.  Poynter's  only  contribution  to  the  Academy  in  1866, 
"  Offerings  to  Isis,"  with  the  simple  remark  that  it  is  a  very  skilful  rendering 
of  a  novel,  peculiar,  yet  most  attractive  subject,  we  come  to  a  work  showing 
still  more  all  these  qualities,  and  which  formed  a  prominent  and  striking 
feature  in  the  Academy  exhibition  of  the  following  year  ;  the  title  was  "  Israel 
in  Egypt." 

Designed  in  a  somewhat  similar  spirit  is  the  picture  we  have  engraved, 
"The  Catapult,"  contributed  to  the  Academy  in  1868.  If  the  subject 
is  less  interesting  than  that  last  referred  to,  the  work  shows  quite  as 
much  artistic  power  and  diligent  study  of  details.  The  huge,  ungainly 
machine  is  certainly  not  picturesque,  and  intrudes  on  the  eye  unpleasantly 
with  its  mass  of  ponderous  beams  intersecting  each  other  in  almost  every 
direction  ;  and  it  is  to  the  base  of  the  composition  we  must  look  chiefly  for 
the  display  of  the  artist's  knowledge  and  skill,  in  the  drawing  of  the  Roman 
soldiers,  and  in  their  harmonious  arrangement;  here,  without  any  unnecessary 
anatomical  display,  "  there  is  a  just  sense  of  composing  lines  in  the  radiating 
arms,  legs,  and  torsi  of  the  figures." 

The  next  step  in  Mr.  Poynter's  art,  though  he  did  not  forsake  altogether 
those  he  had  hitherto  practised,  passed  more  immediately  into  classic 
legend  or  fiction  ;    but  the  works  he  had  already  produced  gained  for  him 


15°  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

admission  into  the  ranks  of  the  Royal  Academy;  for  in  January,  1869,  he 
was  elected  Associate  of  that  institution.  The  first  of  the  mythological 
subjects,  "  Proserpine,"  appeared  in  the  Academy  exhibition  of  that  year,  and 
was  followed  in  1870  by  a  small  but  lovely  little  picture,  "Andromeda," 
beautiful  in  colour  and  deeply  expressive  of  sadness  in  the  half-turned  head 
of  the  captive.  With  it  the  artist  sent  his  two  cartoons,  "St.  George"  and 
"  Fortitude,"  designed  for  mosaics  in  the  central  hall  of  the  House  of  Com- 
mons. "  The  Suppliant  to  Venus  "  (i  871)  is  another  of  Mr.  Poynter's  small 
but  specially  attractive  pictures.  "  Feeding  the  Sacred  Ibis  in  the  Hall  of 
Karnac,"  engraved  in  the  Ari  journal  (or  1874,  was  exhibited  with  it. 

The  most  daring  attempt  the  painter  had  yet  made  in  the  matter  of 
mythological  art  was  his  large  picture,  "  Perseus  and  Andromeda,"  contributed 
to  the  Academy  in  1872.  Andromeda  appears  chained  to  a  rock,  according 
to  the  story  ;  the  sea  dragon,  a  veritable  sea  monster,  is  almost  within  reach 
of  his  victim,  when  her  deliverer  is  seen  descending  from  the  clouds  upon  the 
enemy,  brandishing  in  his  hand  the  weapon  wherewith  the  dragon  is  to  be 
slain.  There  is  unquestionable  grandeur  in  the  whole  design,  and  much 
beauty  of  colour,  especially  in  the  figure  of  Andromeda ;  but  objection  may 
be  legitimately  taken  to  the  enormous  size  of  the  monster  compared  with  that 
of  Perseus  ;  the  disproportion  is  so  great  one  can  scarcely  expect  that  even 
this  son  of  Jupiter  could  prevail  over  his  antagonist,  which  also  occupies  too 
much  of  the  canvas  to  render  the  composition  harmonious  as  to  scale  :  the 
two  figures  seem  to  have  but  a  secondary  place.  It  is  but  fair  to  add  that  the 
great  length  of  the  canvas,  prescribed  by  the  wall  space  it  had  to  fill,  must 
have  increased  the  difficulties  of  the  composition. 

As  a  companion  picture  to  this  last,  Mr.  Poynter  painted  and  sent  to  the 
Academy  in  1873  "The  Fight  between  More,  of  More  Hall,  and  the  Dragon 
of  Wantley,"  a  very  large  composition,  and  of  ambitious  pretensions,  lacking 
but  little  to  make  it  most  successful,  and  the  little  refers  more  to  the  quality 
of  portions  of  the  work  than  to  anything  else. 

"  Rhodope  "  is  a  small  figure  of  elegant  design  ;  it  was  the  artist's  solitary 
contribution  to  the  Academy  in  1874.  In  the  next  year  he  sent  a  pair  of 
subjects,  "  The  Festival  "  and  the  "  Golden  Age  ;  "  in  the  former  (of  which  an 
engraving  is  introduced)  we  see  two  Greek  girls  decorating  an  apartment  with 
flowers,  in  the  latter  two  youths  are  gathering  fruit  from  a  large  tree  in  an 
orchard.      "  Atalanta's  Race"    was  one  of  the  very  few  really  noteworthy 


THE  FESTIVAL. 
From  a  Fainting  hy  Edward  J.  Foynter,  R.A. 


R  T  r  I  E  R  E.  IS  I 

pictures  in  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1876.  The  following  year  "The 
Fortune-teller"  was  deposited  as  the  artist's  diploma  picture  on  becoming' 
Royal  Academician.  "  Zenobia  Captive  "  was  his  most  important  work  of 
1878.  Of  our  two  engravings,  "  The  Festival  "  was  at  the  Philadelphia 
Exhibition  of  1876,  and  "The  Catapult"  at  Paris  in  1878. 

Besides  the  works  to  which  reference  has  been  made,  Mr.  Poynter  has 
been  a  frequent  exhibitor  in  both  oil  and  water  colour  paintings  at  the  Dudley 
Gallery.  The  mosaic  figures,  representing  respectively  "Phidias"  and 
"  Apelles,"  executed  for  the  South  Kensington  Museum,  and  the  architec- 
tural and  pictorial  decorations  of  the  Refreshment  Room,  are  also  from  his 
designs.  His  works  of  every  kind  testify  no  less  to  the  grace  of  his  pencil 
than  to  his  artistic  learning  and  most  attractive  manner  of  displaying  it.  He 
is  one  among  a  limited  class  of  our  painters  who  seek  rather  to  obtain  the 
good  opinion  of  the  comparatively  few  qualified  to  estimate  aright  the  real 
merits  of  a  picture  than  the  applause  of  the  indiscriminating  multitude. 

When  the  Slade  Professorship  of  Art  was  founded  at  the  schools  of 
University  College,  Mr.  Poynter  was  elected  to  fill  the  chair;  he  resigned 
this  post  when  he  received  the  appointment  of  Director  of  the  Art  Schools, 
under  the  Department  of  Science  and  Art,  at  South  Kensington  Museum,  on 
the  resignation  of  Mr.  R.  Redgrave,  R.  A.  :  it  would  have  been  a  very  difficult 
matter  to  find  an  artist  so  eminently  fitted  in  every  way  for  such  a  posi- 
tion. 


The  ancestors  of  Mr.  Briton  Riviere  were  French  Huguenots,  and  sought 
refuge  in  England  after  the  revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes  by  Louis  XIV. 
Painting  appears  to  have  been  inherent  in  the  family  for  many  years  ;  his 
grandfather,  Mr.  D.  V.  Riviere,  gained  a  medal  while  a  student  at  the  Royal 
Academy,  and  exhibited  several  water-colour  pictures  there  between  1837  and 
1840;  notably,  "  Pray  remember  the  Grotto,"  in  1839,  ^"^  "Agreeable 
Companions,"  in  1840.  Still  earlier  than  these  dates  we  find  the  son  of  the 
latter,  Mr.  W.  Riviere  (who  was  born  in  London  in  1806),  head  of  the 
Drawing  School  at  Cheltenham  College,  and  working  laboriously  and  suc- 
cessfully at  Oxford.  In  both  places  he  rendered  great  and  efficient  service : 
at  the  latter  by  his  exertions  to  get  Art  introduced  into  the  University,  his 
ideas  on  that  subject  meeting  with  much  favour  from  many  of  its  members, 


152  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

by  whom  he  was  greatly  respected  as  an  artist  and  a  gentleman.  Mr.  W. 
Riviere  died  towards  the  end  of  1876.  He  was  brother  of  Mr.  H.  P.  Riviere, 
Associate  of  the  Society  of  Water-Colour  Painters,  long  resident  in  Rome, 
and  was  father  of  the  artist  who  is  the  subject  of  the  present  notice.  Mr. 
Briton  Riviere  was  born  in  London,  August  14th,  1840,  and  found  in  his  father 
an  experienced  and  able  master,  under  whom  he  studied  during  the  nine 
years  he  was  at  Cheltenham,  and  subsequently  at  Oxford.  While  studying 
Art  in  the  latter  place  the  influences  other  than  artistic  by  which  he  was 
always  surrounded  prevailed  to  turn  his  attention  to  classic  and  other 
scholarly  matters;  he  entered  the  University,  took  his  B.A.  degree  in  1867, 
and  proceeded  to  his  M.A.  degree  in  1873.  But  the  position  Mr.  Riviere 
acquired  as  a  Graduate  of  Oxford  left  him  no  desire  to  turn  aside  from  the 
pursuit  of  painting ;  it  did  not  even  suffice  to  direct  his  art  to  the  practice  of 
subjects  somewhat  in  harmony  with  the  classic  education  he  had  received. 
The  first  pictures  we  find  him  exhibiting  were  home  rural  scenes,  as  "  Rest 
from  Labour"  and  "Sheep  on  the  Cotswolds,"  in  the  Academy  gallery  in 
1858,  and,  in  the  next  year,  "  On  the  Road  to  Gloucester  Fair."  From  this 
date  till  1 864  he  was  absent  from  the  Academy  as  an  exhibitor,  but  in  the 
last-mentioned  year  he  sent  two  pictures,  called  respectively  "Iron  Bars" 
and  "  Romeo  and  Juliet."  Hitherto  the  artist's  works  had  not  obtained 
places  in  the  gallery  which  could  allow  of  a  careful  critical  examination,  but 
"The  Poacher's  Nurse,"  exhibited  in  1866,  had  the  good  fortune  to  be 
tolerably  well  hung,  and  we  were  able  to  assure  ourselves  of  its  being  a  really 
able  piece  of  painting. 

In  1866  Mr.  Riviere  appeared  to  have  fallen  into  one  of  those  melancholy 
artistic  moods  which  painters  will  indulge  in,  notwithstanding  the  oft-repeated 
truism  that  Art  is  intended  to  give  pleasure  rather  than  pain.  The  two 
pictures  he  sent  to  the  Academy  in  that  year  were  "  Strayed  from  the  Flock," 
a  dead  lamb  lying  in  the  snow  (admirably  engraved  by  Mr.  Stacpoole),  and 
"  The  Long  Sleep,"  representing  an  old  man  sitting  dead  in  his  arm-chair, 
while  his  two  faithful  dogs  are  in  vain  trying  to  make  him  respond  to  their 
caresses.  This  latter  was  the  first  work  that  brought  the  artist  into  popular 
notice.  In  the  exhibition  of  water-colour  paintings  at  the  Dudley  Gallery  in 
1868  Mr.  Riviere  showed  a  very  attractive  drawing  called  "  Fox  and 
Geese:  "  it  is  now  in  the  collection  at  South  Kensington.  At  the  Academy 
in    1869  he  exhibited  "  The  Prisoners,"  one  being  a  young  man  seated,  and 


l'"^'f  ^* 


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to 

RIVIERE.  153 

hiding;  his  face  with  his  hand  ;  the  other,  the  man's  dog,  looking  wistfully  up 
to  his  master,  and  watcliing  him  carefully.  There  is  a  strong  expression 
of  sympathy  and  pity  for  his  master,  in  the  face  of  the  animal,  some  excel- 
lent painting  throughout,  and  a  large  amount  of  light  thrown  upon  the 
canvas. 

Of  the  two  paintings  Mr.  Riviere  contributed  to  the  exhibition  of  the 
Royal  Academy  in  1870,  "A  Midsummer  Night's  Dream  "  and  "  Charity," 
an  engraving  from  the  latter  appears  in  this  work.  To  this  picture  a  medal 
was  awarded  at  the  Great  Vienna  Exhibition ;  it  has  been  well  engraved  on  a 
large  scale  by  Mr.  Stacpoole. 

Another  pitiable  object  was  presented  to  public  view  in  a  picture  exhibited 
at  the  Academy  by  Mr.  Riviere  in  1871,  to  which  he  gave  the  title  of  "  Come 
back !  "  but  it  might  not  inappropriately  have  been  called  "  The  Prodigal 
Daughter;  "  for  the  composition  shows  the  return  to  her  cottage  home  of  a 
poor  wanderer,  who  has  evidently  strayed  wilfully  from  the  fold:  a  dog 
instantly  recognises  her,  and  springs  forward  to  welcome  her.  With  this 
picture  the  artist  exhibited  one  of  a  very  different  kind  ;  one  not  the  less 
acceptable  because  therein  we  met  him  in  a  new  and  more  agreeable  field  of 
labour,  though  the  principal  materials,  a  herd  of  swine,  are  not  most 
suggestive  of  pleasantness.  The  painter  chose  for  his  subject  "  Circe  trans- 
forming the  Friends  of  Ulysses  into  Pigs  "  for  their  gross  misdemeanours. 

"  She  touched  them  with  a  rod  that  wrought 
Their  transformation  far  past  human  wants  : 
Swines'  snouts,  swines'  bodies,  took  they,  bristles,  grunts, 
But  still  retained  the  souls  they  had  before, 
A\'hich  made  them  mourn  their  bodies'  change  the  more." 

Chapman's  Translation  of  the  Odyssey,  Book  X. 

All  that  need  be  said  of  the  work  is,  that  the  animals  are  painted  with  a  truth 
no  one  would  feel  disposed  to  question.  The  picture  was  sent  over  to  the 
recent  Exhibition  at  Philadelphia,  where  a  medal  was  awarded  to  it ;  it  has 
also  been  engraved,  of  considerable  size,  by  Mr.  Stacpoole. 

The  only  work  Mr.  Riviere  sent  to  the  Academy  in  1872,  "Daniel"  in 
the  den  of  the  lions,  has  also  become  familiarised  to  the  public  through  the 
burin  of  the  engraver,  Mr.  C.  J.  Lewis :  the  picture  was  certainly  one  of 
those  which  received  prominent  attention  when  hanging  in  the  Academy. 
In  the  exhibition  at  the  Dudley  Gallery  of  the  same  year  Mr.  Riviere  showed 
another  leonine  subject   from   the  Bible  verse,  "  The  lion  is  come  up  from 

X 


'54 


BRITISH    PAINTERS. 


his  thicket :  "  the  animals  are  designed  with  great  spirit.  About  the  same 
time  he  painted  a  picture  which  has  never  been  exhibited,  "  The  Princess  and 
the  Swans." 

In  several  works  of  his  later  time  he  has  brought  the  classic  knowledge 
and  taste  he  acquired  at  Oxford  to  combine  with  his  love  of  animal  paint- 
ing, as,  for  example,  in  his  "Argus"  (1873),  where  we  see  Ulysses  recog- 
nised by  his  faithful  dying  hound  after  a  long  absence ;  it  is  a  pathetic,  yet 
noble  subject.  From  this  we  turn  to  a  picture  exhibited  at  the  same  time, 
called  "  All  that  was  left  of  the  Homeward  Bound  " — a  young  girl  lashed 
to  a  mast  or  piece  of  timber,  and  floating  on  the  open  sea,  with  a  small  dog 
— a  very  skeleton,  though  alive — seated  on  the  body  of  his  mistress.  What 
can  be  said  concerning  anything  so  harrowing  ?  And  yet  the  picture  has 
been  multiplied  by  the  burin  of  Mr.  Stacpoole. 

"Apollo,"  a  subject  suggested  by  a  passage  in  Euripides,  is  one  of  our 
illustrations:  the  painting  was  exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  1874.  A  c^uota- 
tion  from  the  Greek  poet's  Alcestis  fully  describes  the  subject: — 

"  Apollo's  self 
Deigned  to  become  a  shepherd  in  thine  halls, 
And  tune  his  laj's  along  the  woodland  slopes  ; 
AVhereat  entranced  the  spotted  lynxes  came 
To  mingle  with  thy  flocks  ;  from  Othrys'  glen 
Trooped  tawny  lions  ;  e'en  the  dappled  fawn 
Forth  from  the  shelter  of  her  pinewood  haunts 
Tripped,  to  the  music  of  the  sun-god's  lyre." 

Mr.  Riviere's  contributions  to  the  Academy  in  1875  differed  very  widely 
in  subject-matter,  but  were  of  great  excellence  in  their  respective  depart- 
ments. Ore,  "War  Time,"  an  old  shepherd  looking  woefully  over  a  stone 
wall  in  the  winter  time,  with  a  newspaper  under  his  arm,  in  which  he  is  sup- 
posed to  have  read  a  report  of  the  death  of  his  son.  A  second  work, 
evidently  one  of  the  painter's  best,  was  "  The  Last  of  the  Garrison,"  this 
being  a  dog  which  alone  had  survived  the  siege,  and  is  represented  lying 
down  among  the  debris  of  a  place  that  shows  all  the  results  of  a  hostile 
attack.     The  "  War  Time  "  gained  a  medal  at  Philadelphia. 

Our  space  is  already  exhausted,  so  that  we  can  only  name  the  artist's 
subsequent  works  exhibited  at  the  Royal  Academy,  and  the  date  of  these  is 
so  comparatively  recent  that  they  must  be  tolerably  fresh  in  the  recollection 
of  our  readers,  especially  as  the  subjects  themselves  were  very  attractive. 


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WALKER.  155 

In  1S76  he  sent  a  duck  and  frog-  picture,  called  "A  stern  chase  is  always  a 
long  chase,"  and  "  Pallas  Athene  and  the  Swineherd's  Dogs."  In  1877  he 
contributed  "A  Legend  of  St.  Patrick"  and  "Lazarus."  In  1878  he 
became  an  Associate  of  the  Academy,  and  to  that  year  belong  "Sympathy" 
and  "  An  Anxious  Moment."  There  are  many  other  works  by  this  painter 
in  existence  which  have  not  appeared  in  public,  but  which  we  cannot  even 
enumerate. 

Apart  from  the  subject  of  some  of  Mr.  Riviere's  pictures,  we  have 
nothing  but  praise  to  award  to  them.  They  show  fidelity  to  nature  and  care- 
ful studentship  in  Art ;  and  there  is  a  grandeur  in  his  wild  animals  not  difficult 
to  recognise. 


In  November,  1859,  "  a  nervous,  timid,  boyish  aspirant  for  employment  as  a 
draughtsman  on  wood  called  on  the  editor  of  Once  a  Jllr/c  v/ith  specimens  of 
his  work.  They  were  examined,  approved,  and  a  commission  was  given  him 
to  Illustrate  a  story  called  '  Peasant  Proprietorship,'  which  appeared,  with 
the  nervous  young  artist's  illustration,  in  the  number  for  February  18,  i860." 

Thus  wrote  Mr.  Tom  Taylor  as  an  introductory  passage  to  a  brief 
biographical  sketch  of  the  late  Frederick  Walker,  which  prefaces  the 
catalogue  of  the  works  of  the  artist  exhibited  in  New  Bond  Street :  that 
visit  to  the  editorial  sanduin  was  the  first  public  step  in  a  career  of  short-lived 
brilliancy,  for  his  "sun  went  down  while  it  was  yet  day."  Born  In 
Marylebone  in  1840,  Walker's  earliest  years  had  some  association  with  Art, 
his  father — whom,  however,  he  lost  in  boyhood — being  a  designer  for  jeweller)'. 
When  at  school  he  displayed  considerable  skill  with  the  pencil,  and  he 
was  accustomed  to  spend  much  of  his  spare  time  drawing  from  the  antiques 
in  the  British  Museum.  At  the  suggestion  of  an  uncle  he  entered,  when 
about  sixteen  years  of  age,  the  office  of  an  architect,  Mr.  Baker,  who  was  also 
district  surveyor  of  St.  Pancras,  with  whom  he  remained  rather  more  than  a 
year ;  but  his  earnest  desire  to  become  a  painter,  sustained  as  It  was  by  that 
of  his  mother,  who  was  not  slow  in  detecting  and  appreciating  the  latent 
genius  of  her  son.  Induced  him  to  leave  Mr.  Baker's  office,  and  enter  at  once 
upon  a  course  of  close  study  of  Art.  In  the  daytime  he  resumed  his  work  in 
the  British  Museum,  and  In  the  evening  attended  the  classes  at  ]\Ir.  Leigh's 
studio  in  Newman  Street.     Soon  afterwards  young  A\'alker  was  admitted  a 


156  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

Student  of  the  Royal  Academy,  but,  according  to  Mr.  Taylor,  "  did  not  draw 
there  very  closely,  never  even  reaching  the  Life  Classes."  His  great 
ambition  at  this  period  of  his  life  seems  to  have  been  the  earning  of  his  own 
livelihood ;  and  feeling  that  the  quickest  and  surest  way  of  gaining  this 
point  was  to  qualify  himself  for  such  work,  he  passed  three  days  a  week  for 
about  two  years  in  the  atelier  of  Mr.  Whymper,  the  wood  engraver.  It  may 
not  be  generally  known  that  a  drawing  on  wood  demands  peculiar  manipula- 
tion to  suit  the  requirements  of  the  engraver ;  we  have  frequently  seen 
drawings  on  wood  which,  to  an  unprofessional  eye,  look  everything  that 
could  be  desired,  rejected  by  the  engraver  because,  to  use  a  technicality, 
"they  would  not  cut.'"  Under  Mr.  Whymper's  guidance  and  directions  his 
pupil,  if  we  may  so  term  the  youthful  artist,  soon  surmounted  whatever 
difficulties  lay  in  his  path  as  a  wood  draughtsman,  and  found  ample  employ- 
ment for  his  talents. 

Walker's  introduction  to  the  editor  of  Once  a  Week  led  to  his  being 
engaged  by  Thackeray,  who  about  that  time  conducted  the  Cornhill  Magazine, 
and  was  writing  for  it  the  well-known  tale  "  Philip  and  his  Adventures  on 
his  Way  through  the  World,"  illustrating  it  with  his  own  designs.  Finding 
the  combined  labours  of  pen  and  pencil  too  heavy  a  tax  upon  him,  Thackeray 
arranged  with  Walker  to  undertake  the  work  of  the  latter :  this  he  commenced 
in  May,  1861,  and  concluded  in  August  of  the  following  year,  when  the  story 
was  completed.  Subsequently  he  supplied  designs  for  some  stories  by  Miss 
Thackeray,  while  he  was  all  this  time  busy  at  work  for  Once  a  Week,  in  which) 
as  Mr.  Taylor  observes,  he  "  was  exposed  to  no  common  competition,  for  the 
artists  employed  on  that  periodical  included  Millais,  Holman  Hunt,  J.  Leech, 
Tenniel,  Sandys,  Poynter,  Lawless,  Du  Maurier,  C.  Keene,  and  others  of 
high  and  various  reputation.  But  here,  as  in  the  Cornhill  JMagazine,  the 
nervous,  timid,  sensitive  young  fellow,  frail  and  small  of  body,  feverish  of 
temperament,  but  ever  prompt  and  bright  of  wit,  and  close  and  keen  of 
observation,  not  only  made  his  mark,  but  gradually  established  a  decided 
pre-eminence  among  his  associates."  The  predominating  qualities  of  his 
designs  for  book  illustrations  are  facility  of  invention  combined  with  great 
tenderness  and  grace  in  drawing,  and  an  innate  perception  of  individual 
character :  by  skilful  and  subtle  arrangement  of  light  and  shade  he  produced 
striking  and  brilliant  effects,  yet  all  in  perfect  harmony,  while  his  designs 
generally,  are  their  own  interpreter.     \\\    1863  Walker  sent   to   the   Royal 


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Academy  "The  Lost  Path,"  the  first  work  in  colours  he  ever  exhibited. 
Early  in  1864  he  was  elected  an  Associate  of  the  Water-Colour  Society,  and 
contributed  to  its  exhibition  of  that  year  four  drawings,  of  which  two  were 
especially  the  themes  of  general  attraction  :  "  Spring,"  symbolized  by  a  boy 
and  girl  gathering  primroses,  and  a  scene  in  Thackeray's  "  Philip  :  "  Philip 
forms  one  of  a  family  seated  in  a  church.  This  tells  much  and  suggests 
more :  every  face  has  its  history  and  its  lesson ;  thought  and  devotion  are 
impressed  on  each  feature. 

"The  Wayfarers,"  exhibited  at  Mr.  Wallis's  gallery  in  1866,  gave  rise 
to  some  diversity  of  opinion  among  the  critics.  The  subject  shows  a  blind 
man  led  by  a  boy  along  a  country  road  saturated  with  rain  :  the  execution  is 
peculiar,  and  the  general  effect  is  certainly  not  pleasing;  but  artistic  power 
and  forcible  expression  must  not  be  denied  to  the  work. 

In  1867  Walker  was  elected  a  Member  of  the  Water-Colour  Society,  but 
he  contributed  nothing  to  the  exhibition  of  the  season  :  to  the  Royal  Academy 
he  sent  a  rather  large  oil  painting,  "  The  Bathers,"  a  composition  containing 
twenty  figures,  boys. 

While  writing  of  Walker's  pictures  In  water  colours.  It  is  perhaps  better 
to  continue  our  remarks  on  these  before  referring  again  to  his  oil  paint- 
ings. In  the  Winter  Exhibition  of  the  Society  In  1872-3  was  his  "Fish- 
monger's Shop,"  a  small  drawing,  but  of  exquisite  manipulation,  and  absolutely 
glittering  with  beautiful  tints,  as  a  diamond  when  It  catches  the  rays  of  the 
sun.  Mr.  Ruskin  objects  to  this  drawing,  but  only  because  the  labour  spent 
on  It  "would  have  painted  twenty  Instructive  studies  of  fish  of  their  real 
size."  "  Nobody,"  he  says,  "wants  to  carry  about  the  miniature  of  a  cod." 
Certainly  not ;  yet,  on  the  other  hand,  who  would  care  to  hang  up  a  picture  of 
a  full-grown  lusty  cod,  "  real  size?  "  One  can  scarcely  understand  the  con- 
sistency of  the  objection  from  a  critic  usually  so  cxigcant  after  "delicate 
completion." 

"  The  Fireside,"  the  first  of  the  examples  we  have  engraved  to  illustrate 
the  works  of  this  artist,  Is  a  small  drawing  which  was  never  publicly  shown 
till  the  exhibition  of  his  works  in  New  Bond  Street. 

In  1868  he  sent  to  the  Royal  Academy  a  master- work,  "Vagrants  In  the 
Glen,"  a  group  of  gipsies,  five  in  number,  encamped  in  a  hollow  near  a  pool : 
it  is  daytime,  and  the  painter  has  given  great  brilliancy  to  the  scene  by  "  a 
fierce  conflict  of  colour,"  yet  free  from  crudity.     The  composition  Is  remark- 


1S8  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

able  for  depth  of  expression :  there  is  a  pathos,  a  melancholy,  about  these 
poor  outcasts  which  awakens  our  compassion.  Hearts  of  a  brave  humanity 
have  those  wanderers,  though  rude  in  person  and  ragged  of  attire.  Specially 
noble  is  the  bearing  of  the  woman  with  folded  arms,  and  of  countenance 
moodily  meditative. 

Under  the  title  of  "  The  Plough,"  and  adopting  as  the  motto  of  his  work 
the  Psalmist's  oft-quoted  text,  "  Man  goeth  forth  to  his  work  and  to  his 
labour  until  the  evening,"  Walker  contributed  to  the  Academy,  in  1870, 
another  picture  of  considerable  dimensions,  and  possibly  the  best  balanced  of 
all  his  compositions.  The  exhibition  of  this  really  fine  work  was  soon  after 
followed  by  the  painter  being  elected  an  Associate  of  the  Royal  Academy. 
His  contribution  to  the  gallery  in  1871,  the  year  of  his  election,  was  a  disap- 
pointment to  all  admirers  of  his  works.  "At  the  Bar"  is  assumed  to 
represent  a  woman  on  her  trial,  but  the  meaning  is  not  very  intelligible,  and 
the  colouring  not  satisfactory ;  it  seems,  as  we  remarked  at  the  time,  that  the 
artist  found  himself  going  so  far  wrong  that  he  was  unable  to  set  himself 
right,  at  least  without  beginning  all  over  again. 

Whatever  was  lacking  in  "  At  the  Bar"  was  amply  supplied  in  Walker's 
next  contribution  to  the  Academy,  "  The  Harbour  of  Refuge,"  which  appeared 
in  1872,  certainly  the  most  poetic  composition  he  ever  produced,  and  full  of 
sweet  tenderness,  bordering  very  closely  on  sadness  ;  yet  why  sad  one  scarcely 
knows,  for  the  aged  inmates  of  the  almshouses  which  constitute  "  The 
Harbour  of  Refuge,"  and  who  are  dispersed  about  the  garden  walks  of  the 
quadrangular  building,  seem  only  to  be  quietly  waiting  for  their  dismission 
from  earth. 

One  other  painting  only  was  exhibited  at  the  Academy  after  that  just 
mentioned.  "The  Right  of  Way"  appeared  three  years  later,  namely,  in 
1875  •  ^^  have  introduced  an  engraving.  While  it  was  still  hanging  on  the 
walls  of  the  Academy,  drawing  to  it  the  notice  of  every  visitor,  the  hand  of 
the  gifted  artist  was  arrested  by  death.  This  event  occurred  in  the  month  of 
June  of  the  same  year :  consumption,  that  fell  disease  which  so  often  lays 
hold  of  genius,  took  from  us,  at  the  comparatively  early  age  of  thirty-five, 
one  whom  English  Art  would  but  ill  have  cared  to  lose. 

Of  what  may  be  termed  idyllic  painting  Frederick  Walker  was  unquestion- 
ably one  of  the  ablest  representatives,  and  in  it  he  appealed  to  a  deeper  feeling 
than  is  generally  to  be  found  among  the  artists  of  this  school.     Defects  of 


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st}le  were  occasionally  to  be  noticed,  but  they  were  in  a  great  measure 
redeemed  by  grace  of  composition  and  the  expression  of  a  deep  and  earnest 
sj'mpathy,  kind  and  true,  with  every  phase  and  condition  of  human  life  :  it 
has  been  well  said  of  his  works  that  "  they  tell  us  over  and  over  again  of  the 
manifold  beauties,  in  form  and  colour,  which  beset  our  every-day  life,  if  we 
have  eyes  to  sec  and  sensitiveness  to  appreciate." 


Frank  Holl,  a  son  of  the  celebrated  engraver  of  the  same  name,  was 
born  in  London  in  1845,  ^"d  was  educated  in  the  school  of  University 
College.  Soon  after  he  had  passed  the  fifteenth  year  of  his  age  his  desire 
to  be  a  painter  led  him  to  enter  himself  as  a  probationer  of  the  Royal 
Academy,  and  a  few  months  afterwards  he  was  admitted  a  student.  At 
the  distribution  of  prizes  in  1862  Mr.  Holl  received  a  silver  medal  for  "  the 
best  drawing  from  the  antique,"  and  also  the  premium  of  ten  pounds.  A 
picture,  "A  Mother  and  Sick  Child,"  was  painted  by  him  about  this  time, 
as  a  commission  given  by  a  cotton  merchant  of  Rochdale :  the  work  was 
never  exhibited.  In  the  competition  of  the  students  in  the  following  year 
(1863)  Mr.  Holl  was  yet  more  successful,  obtaining  the  gold  medal,  books, 
and  a  scholarship  of  twenty-five  pounds  for  two  years,  "  for  the  best  historical 
painting,"  and  a  silver  medal  for  "the  second-best  drawing  from  the  life." 
The  subject  of  the  picture  for  which  the  gold  medal,  &c.,  were  awarded 
v\-as  "  Abraham  about  to  sacrifice  Isaac." 

In  1864  he  made  his  first  appearance  as  an  exhibitor  at  the  Royal 
Academy  with  two  pictures,  one  being  "A  Portrait,"  the  other  bearing  the 
title  of  "Turned  out  of  Church."  His  picture  exhibited  In  1866,  "The 
Ordeal,"  shows  a  tyro  submitting  a  picture  he  has  just  executed  to  a  patron, 
and  waiting  with  no  little  anxiety  for  the  decision  of  the  latter.  There  Is 
considerable  point  In  the  composition,  so  far  as  it  tells  the  story,  while  the 
manner  In  which  it  is  carried  out,  though  evidencing,  as  might  reasonably 
be  expected,  an  Inexperienced  hand,  gave  promise  of  a  future  which  has  now 
been  in  a  great  measure  fulfilled.  The  very  next  year  (1867)  produced  two 
pictures  at  the  Academy  which  went  a  long  way  towards  the  realisation 
of  the  success  foreshadowed  In  "The  Ordeal:"  these  were  respectively 
entitled  "A  Convalescent  "  and  "  Faces  in  the  Fire."  His  only  contribution 
to  the  Academy  exhibition  of  1S6S  was  a  striking  portrait  of  his  father  ;  but 


,6o  B  RITI  SB    PA  I N  T  ER  S. 

at  the  end  of  that  year  we  find  his  name  at  the  head  of  those  students  of 
the  Academy  on  whom  prizes  were  bestowed,  his  award  being  the  "  two 
years'  travelling-  studentship  for  painting."  The  picture  which  obtained  for 
Mr.  Holl  this  distinction  was  exhibited  at  Burlington  House  in  1869,  the 
year  in  which  the  Academy  removed  to  Piccadilly  from  Trafalgar  Square. 
It  had  for  its  title  a  passage  from  the  Book  of  Job — "The  Lord  gave,  and 
the  Lord  hath  taken  away;  blessed  be  the  name  of  the  Lord  :  "  an  engraving 
from  it  forms  one  of  our  illustrations.  On  referring  to  our  catalogue  of  the 
Academy  exhibition  in  1869,  we  find  this  picture  marked  as  one  of  the  most 
striking  works  of  its  character  in  the  gallery,  sad  as  is  the  subject,  which 
was  suggested  by  a  story  wherein  is  an  incident  describing  the  assembling 
of  a  family  for  the  first  time  after  the  death  and  funeral  of  the  last  and  only 
parent.  The  eldest  son,  a  young  minister,  now  assumes  the  headship,  and, 
as  such,  says  grace  at  the  meal,  and  alludes  to  the  loss  in  the  words  adopted 
for  the  title  of  the  picture. 

Another  scriptural  subject  was  contributed  to  the  Academy  in  1870;  it 
inculcated  the  duty  of  loving-kindness  as  taught  by  Solomon  in  the  Book  of 
Proverbs — "  Better  is  a  dinner  of  herbs  where  love  is,  than  a  stalled  ox  and 
hatred  therewith."  The  composition  is  made  out  in  conformity  with  the 
first  portion  of  the  text,  and  therefore  needs  no  description ;  but  the  execu- 
tion throughout  is  certainly  less  successful  than  that  of  the  picture  just 
mentioned,  inasmuch  as  there  is  an  absence  of  finish  in  some  parts  where 
such  a  quality  seems  to  be  required  to  give  value  to  the  work  ;  in  other 
words,  the  execution  is  too  broadly  generalised.  As  a  kind  of  set-off  to  this, 
the  picture  is  remarkable  for  richness  of  colour. 

Mr.  Holl's  works  had  already  arrested  the  attention  of  the  Queen,  and 
he  had  the  honour  of  receiving  a  commission  from  her  Majesty  to  paint  a 
picture  for  her:  the  result  was  "No  Tidings  from  the  Sea,"  exhibited  at  the 
Academy  in  187 1,  with  another  entitled  "Winter:"  the  former  tells  a 
pathetic  story,  and  the  execution  is  as  earnest  as  the  conception.  Both 
works  fully  maintained  the  reputation  already  acquired  by  the  young 
artist. 

Founded  on  the  verse  of  Scripture,  "  I  am  the  resurrection  and  the  life," 
and  adopting  the  words  for  the  title  of  his  picture,  Mr.  Holl  sent  to  the 
Academy  in  1872  a  work  the  subject  of  which  is  a  village  funeral ;  the  scene 
represents  a  procession  of  mourners  following  the  dead  along  the  churchyard 


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path.  The  "  pomp  and  circumstance  "  of  interment  find  no  place  amid  such 
an  assembly  as  is  gathered  here,  dressed  in  habiliments  of  mourning-  which 
show  more  the  scantiness  of  the  purse  than  the  depth  of  grief  felt  by  those 
who  wear  them.  And  perhaps  it  is  owing  to  the  absence  of  so  much  of  the 
outward  and  visible  manifestation  of  sorrow  that  one  feels  the  solemnity  of 
the  composition,  which  is  worked  out  with  impressive  pathos,  and  shows  much 
artistic  excellence  in  treatment  and  manner.  With  this  ver}^  touching 
picture  was  exhibited  another,  but  of  a  different  character,  simply  "A  Milk- 
maid." 

"Leaving  Home,"  Mr.  Holl's  solitary  contribution  to  the  Academy  in 
1873,  represents  part  of  a  railway  station,  where  two  or  three  persons  are 
seated,  waiting  the  arrival  of  a  train  to  carry  them  away.  Though  the 
subject  is  not  novel,  this  version  of  the  incident  reveals  many  commendable 
qualities  of  painting.  To  Mr.  Wallis's  gallery  in  Pall  Mall  he  sent,  in 
the  winter  of  the  same  year,  "Want — her  poverty,  but  not  her  will, 
consents." 

One  of  the  engravings  introduced  here  is  the  "Deserted,"  taken  from 
Mr.  Holl's  picture  exhibited  at  the  Academy  in  1874  :  it  tells  its  own  story 
perspicuously  enough.  The  scene  is  presumed  to  lie  on  one  of  the  wharfs 
on  the  banks  of  the  Thames  in  Southwark  :  on  it  is  a  crane  for  landing  and 
shipping  merchandise,  half  visible  in  the  fog ;  and  it  is  probable  that  the 
infant  which  the  policeman  carries  so  carefully  was  found  concealed  behind  it. 
It  is  early  dawn,  and  a  thick  dingy  mist  envelops  everj'thing  but  the  nearest 
group  of  figures,  which  alone  are  seen  with  any  distinctness.  The  men, 
judging  by  their  dress,  are  evidently  not  yet  off  day-duty,  and  the  people  who 
are  with  them  were  probably  about  to  begin  their  daily  labours  when  the 
discovery  of  the  "  deserted  "  one  arrested  their  attention  ;  and  their  curiosity, 
excited  by  the  occurrence,  leads  them  to  accompany  the  officers  to  ascertain, 
if  possible,  what  will  become  of  it.  The  woman  in  the  distance,  who  furtively 
watches  the  whole  procedure,  knows,  it  may  be  presumed,  more  about  the 
foundling  than  she  cares  to  disclose  except  upon  compulsion.  The  subject  in 
itself  cannot  be  considered  either  pleasing  or  attractive,  but  it  is  truthfully 
worked  out,  and  its  artistic  merits  are  neither  few  nor  insignificant. 

Another  of  Mr.  Holl's  exhibited  pictures  which  remains  to  be  pointed  out 
is  "  A  Deserter,"  hung  in  Mr.  Wallis's  gallery  in  the  winter  of  1874.  The 
deserter  and  his  escort,  two  stalwart  Highlanders,  have  arrived  at  the  door  of 

Y 


i62  BRITISH    PAINTERS. 

a  roadside  public-house  for  rest  and  refreshment.  There  is  much  character 
in  the  figures,  and  vigorous  drawing  combined  with  excellent  colouring,  all 
contributing  to  make  the  picture  one  of  very  great  interest.  In  1875  nothing 
came  from  his  studio  ;  we  believe  he  was  unable  to  complete  in  time  the  work 
intended  for  the  Academy  exhibition.  In  1876  we  noticed  with  much  interest 
"Her  First-born;"  and  in  1877,  "Going  Home."  His  diploma  picture  on 
election  as  an  Associate  of  the  Academy  in  1878  was  "  Committed  for  Trial." 


THE    END. 


PRINTED  BY  VIRTUE  AND  CO.,   LIMITED,   CITY  ROAD,    LONDON. 


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